


Misdiagnosis

by Ilovesocks_24



Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: But no one knows that yet, Dennis is back, Derek Uses His Words, Derek is a werewolf, Fluff, If you don't know Dennis, Isaac is smarter than people give him credit for, Kid Fic, Kid!Danny, Kid!Isaac, M/M, Pediatrician!Derek, Rotating POV's, Twisted and Fluffy Feelings, You're gonna know Dennis, but not really, daddy!stiles
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-04-20
Updated: 2013-06-10
Packaged: 2017-12-08 23:24:34
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 64,282
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/767305
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Ilovesocks_24/pseuds/Ilovesocks_24
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>It's actually pretty simple:</p><p>Isaac is Stiles' son.<br/>Derek is Isaac's pediatrician.<br/>Stiles is Derek's mate. </p><p>Or. </p><p>The one where Dr. Derek diagnoses Isaac with a fake disease in an effort to see Stiles more often and ultimately tell him that he is Derek's mate.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Stiles

“Dad! Dad! Today we learned about the solar system!” Isaac called as he ran over to his dad. 

“Hey buddy!” Stiles smiled as he picked up his 5-year son and twirled him around. “That’s so cool! Did you learn about Pluto?” 

“No,” Isaac frowned, wrinkling his nose. “Ms. Allison says that Pluto isn’t a planet anymore.” 

Stiles grinned and put his son back on the ground. “Pluto is totally a planet, trust me.” 

“Ok,” Isaac brightened. His smile just melted Stiles heart. 

Isaac was Stiles’ world. 

Literally. 

If Stiles’ life was anything like the solar system that his son had just learned about, then Isaac would be the sun, and Stiles would be everything else, constantly revolving around Isaac. 

Stiles loved Isaac so much. His 5-year old son had the uncanny ability to brighten up Stiles’ day no matter what. The rent was late? Isaac would give Stiles a drawing. Stiles was feeling lonely? Isaac would crawl into his lap and say that he was the best dad ever. 

Being a single dad was hard. But Stiles had sworn that he would give Isaac the best life ever, and that was a promise he intended to keep. 

As soon as he had graduated High School, Stiles had moved in with his high school sweetheart, Jenny. He thought he had loved her. He really did. He had even been saving up money to buy a wedding ring to propose. 

Except for the fact that Jenny wasn’t in love with Stiles the same way Stiles was in love with Jenny. 

Stiles figured that things started going south the day Jenny figured out that she was pregnant. She started distancing herself from Stiles. She never wanted to do anything. It was almost as if she was upset that she had gotten pregnant. 

Stiles, on the other hand was ecstatic. He took it upon himself to learn everything about pregnancies. He checked out books from the library, he became a master of Wikipedia, and he talked to his elderly neighbors if it was normal for your wife to start hating you during her pregnancy. 

Stiles even picked up a book of baby names. He spent weeks saying different names over and over, rolling them around in his mouth, seeing if he would enjoy saying them for the rest of his life. 

He eventually decided on Isaac, because he liked the way it sounded, and it meant ‘laughter’. Stiles was determined to make sure that Isaac would always be happy and would always be laughing.

He swore that to his unborn son. 

The day Isaac was born was the happiest day of Stiles’ life. As soon as the doctor handed Isaac to Stiles, Isaac grinned, made a small cooing noise, yawned and snuggled into Stiles’ chest. It was the single most adorable thing on the planet. At the risk of sounding totally cliché, but it was love at first sight. 

Stiles was a father.

He had a beautiful, healthy son. 

It was the happiest moment of his life. 

Unfortunately that moment was spoiled almost immediately. 

“Him or me.” Jenny said quietly, from her place in the hospital bed. She had just finished giving birth, and she still had IV’s hooked up to her arms. But there was no mistaking what she had just said. 

“What?”

“You heard me Stiles. You have a choice to make. You can have me or you can have Isaac. But you can’t have us both.”

“What are you talking about?”

“I’m not going to share you with a toddler. I didn’t even want to get pregnant.” 

“Jenny,” Stiles gasped, his lungs were suddenly void of oxygen. “Jenny you can’t be serious.” 

Isaac made a small mewling noise and started nodding off into sleep. 

“I am. And the fact that you haven’t chosen me already, tells me that you chose Isaac over me.” 

“No,” Stiles whispered, eyes starting to water. “No, you can’t do this. Please.” 

“It’s already done, I brought my plane ticket last night. I’m leaving on Saturday.”

Stiles froze. 

It was Thursday night. 

“It’s over, Stiles,” Jenny continued sadly. “You’ve made your choice. I knew you would. When I get discharged I’m going to move in with my aunt in Pennsylvania. You’ll never have to see me again.” 

“Jenny please,” Stiles cried. 

“I’m sorry.” 

Stiles never saw Jenny again. 

He had run out of the room, clutching Isaac close to his chest. When he had regained his composure, Jenny had already been discharged and she was long gone. Two weeks later, Stiles got a letter in the mail, containing legal documents where Jenny signed all rights over to him in regards to Isaac. Child support agreements, visiting rights, it was all there. 

It was a done deal. 

Stiles was a single father. 

“Dad, do I have a doctor’s appointment today?” Isaac asked, snapping Stiles out of his daze. 

“You sure do,” Stiles grinned, ruffling his son’s hair. “Are you excited to see Dr. Derek?”

The infamous Dr. Derek Hale. He was kind of a big deal at the Beacon Hills hospital. He was only 28, about a year older than Stiles, and was already the head Pediatrician at the hospital. He was also a part-time paramedic. Derek also had a reputation for being particularly gruff with some of his patients. Rumor has it that one time a little girl had thrown up on his scrubs and he had actually grew fangs and growled at her until she cried. 

But for some reason, Derek was really nice to Stiles and Isaac. At the PTA meetings, Stiles overheard a lot of the other parents complaining about how gruff and mean Dr. Derek Hale was with their children, but Stiles could never chime in because Dr. Derek was always nice to him. Thankfully, Stiles and Isaac had never experienced the bad side of Dr. Derek. In fact, Derek seemed to be happy just to see them both, like seeing Isaac and Stiles just made Derek’s day. 

Whatever it was, Stiles would take it. 

“Yeah! I love him! He gives me lollipops!” 

Stiles smiled to himself. Personally he didn’t know who was more excited to see Dr. Derek, him or Isaac. Outside of Stiles, Derek was Isaac’s favorite person on the planet. But Stiles’ couldn’t blame him, Dr. Derek was hot. Stiles wouldn’t mind getting sick more often if it meant that Derek would be the one taking care of him. 

“Dad come on! We’re going to be late!”

Stiles snorted as he buckled Isaac into his car seat. Isaac was kind of a weirdo. If Stiles had to make a list of all the things that Isaac loved, the list would probably look like this. 

1\. Stiles  
2\. Dr. Derek  
3\. Lollipops.  
4\. Danny, Isaac’s ‘boyfriend’

“Well we better hurry up, so you can get a lollipop,” Stiles smiled, tickling Isaac, who squealed with glee. 

Once Stiles and Isaac arrived at the hospital, they sat around in the waiting room. Isaac picked up some trains and Stiles picked up a magazine, hoping to hide behind it when Dr. Derek showed up. 

Stiles always blushed when Dr. Derek showed up. 

It was unfair how hot that man was. 

He should be an actor or something. 

“Isaac?” Derek’s voice called. 

And fuck, there he was. 

Dr. Derek Hale, looking hot as usual. He was sporting his delicious stubble, and the sleeves of his scrubs were rolled up to his elbows, exposing his muscled forearms. He was even wearing those hideous hospital regulated crocs, and he still looked like sex on legs. His stethoscope was hanging around his neck, and was looking around the room for Isaac. 

Basically Dr. Derek was just the hottest thing on the planet. 

“Dr. Derek!” Isaac shouted, abandoning his trains and running to give Derek a hug. 

“Hey pup.” Derek smiled. 

Stiles bit back a grin. Isaac treated Derek almost like a second dad, which was saying a lot, considering how he only went saw Derek once every 3 months for a check up. Of course, Stiles wouldn’t mind if Derek actually became Isaac’s father. Because that would mean that Stiles would be Derek’s husband.

Stiles was very ok with that idea. 

“Just a checkup today?” Derek asked, looking at Stiles. 

“Oh… yeah,” Stiles stuttered. He felt his face heat up and he knew he was blushing. Derek was smirking, so Stiles knew he had seen it. Why was this his life?

“Alright,” Derek grinned, still looking at Stiles. “We’ll be out in about 15 minutes.” Then he turned to Isaac, who was literally vibrating with pleasure. “You ready to go, Isaac?” 

“Yeah!” Isaac grinned. 

Stiles watched as Derek took Isaac’s hand and led him back to the pediatrics room. Stiles took a deep breath and let it all out slowly. He tried to relax, but he couldn’t. 

He was just thinking about how fucking hot Derek looked, and how great he was with Isaac, and how nice it would be to date Derek. How nice it would be to marry Derek. How nice it would be to raise Isaac with Derek. How nice it would be to have sex with Derek. 

Stiles groaned and pushed the thoughts from his head. He couldn’t afford to think like that. Derek was way out of his league, and Stiles couldn’t afford another heartbreak. Plus Derek probably got the same reaction from Stiles that he did from all the other women who brought their kids into Beacon Hills General for check ups. 

Stiles was nothing special. 

He had to move on, and focus on himself and Isaac. 

But it was still hard to get Derek’s beautiful smiling face out of his head. 

Why did Derek always smile at him, if he didn’t want anything to do with Stiles? 

About 30 minutes later, Derek came out into the waiting room with a less than pleasant expression on his face. 

“I need to see you Stiles.” 

Stiles felt his heart plummet. It was probably somewhere in his stomach right now. He instantly thought of worst-case scenarios. Isaac had cancer and had 6 months to live. Isaac had a brain tumor and had 5 months to live. Isaac had diabetes. 

Stiles didn’t know. He just knew that he couldn’t lose Isaac. He absolutely could not lose his son. 

Stiles legs suddenly decided that they were going to walk, and they carried him to where Derek was standing. “Ok,” Stiles choked out. “Let’s go.”

Derek nodded and led Stiles back to the pediatrics room. 

“Hi Dad!” Isaac beamed, as Stiles walked into the room. 

“Hey bud,” Stiles forced a smile, sitting down and pulling Isaac onto his lap. He rested his forehead against the back of Isaac’s head and kissed the back of his neck. He squeezed his son tight, and anticipated hearing the worst. 

“It’s nothing serious,” Dr. Derek started. “I probably should’ve told you that up front.” 

“What?” Stiles choked out. He had just spent the last couple of minutes freaking out that his son was dying and now it wasn’t anything serious? The fuck?

“I’m sorry,” Derek frowned. “I wasn’t thinking clearly.”

“What’s wrong with my son?” Stiles demanded, a little harsher than usual. 

Derek winced. 

“It’s nothing serious,” he repeated. “It’s just he has an irregular heartbeat. I would classify it as a level 2 heart murmur.”

Stiles wracked his brain of all the things he knew about heart murmurs. He had taken an anatomy course in college, and from what he remembered, heart murmurs were when deoxygenated blood mixed with oxygenated blood. Dr. Derek was right, usually they weren’t serious, but they could become serious. If they got bad enough, eventually the patient could die, just from not being able to get enough oxygen around their body. 

Stiles panicked. 

His breaths became shorter and he started clutching Isaac tighter. His palms started to sweat, and he was at a loss for words. 

“So what do we do?” he finally asked. 

“Well I’d like to monitor him a little more frequently,” Derek replied, knitting his eyebrows together. “Heart murmurs can progress, and I’d like to see him maybe once a week to make sure that his isn’t getting worse.” 

“Ok, ok,” Stiles repeated, clutching Isaac tightly. “We can do that. Every Thursday around 3, sound good? We can come right after school.”

“That sounds great,” Derek smiled. He smiled, why was he smiling? “I guess I will see you guys in a week then.” 

“Bye Dr. Derek!” Isaac called, wriggling out of Stiles’ grip and running to give Derek a hug. Isaac was so small and Derek was 6 feet tall, so when Isaac wrapped his arms around Derek’s knees, his head was… 

Well we’ll just say that Isaac’s head was where Stiles wanted his head to be. 

“Bye pup,” Derek smiled, reaching down and patting Isaac on the back. “Be nice to your dad for me.” 

“I will,” Isaac smiled. 

“Go out to the receptionist and get a lollipop. Tell her that Dr. Derek said that you could have 2 for being a great patient.” 

Isaac smiled brightly and took off down the hallway back to the waiting room, leaving Stiles alone in the hospital room with Derek. 

“He’s a great kid,” Derek smiled. “Always happy. He’s one of my favorite patients.” 

Stiles nodded. “Yeah, he has a tendency to just brighten everyone’s day.”

“He’s going to be ok, Stiles.” Derek assured. “Heart murmurs are harmless about 90% of the time. He’s going to be fine.” 

“Ok,” Stiles said softly. If Derek was confident that Isaac was ok, then Stiles could be too. After all, Derek was the one with the degree in pediatrics, not Stiles. 

“So I’ll see you both on Thursday then.”

“3 o’clock.”

Derek extended his hand out for a shake and Stiles took it. As Stiles was leaving the room, he couldn’t help but think that Derek’s hand had lingered a little bit too long for a friendly handshake. 

He shook his head and went out to the waiting room to make sure that Isaac didn’t charm his way into getting any more than 2 lollipops.


	2. Derek

Derek pulled into the hospital at 6:30 in the morning. He was exhausted. Last night had been a full moon, and his wolf was still restless. Full moons were never fun, and it really sucked when he had to work a double shift the next day.

Derek dragged his feet into the office and was handed his schedule by Dr. Graham, the head doctor. Derek really loathed that guy, just because he had gotten his doctorate in Biogenetics from Harvard didn’t mean that he was better than everyone else. 

Derek had double majored and gotten his credentials in both Pediatrics and Emergency Response Services, and he was only 28. You didn’t see him walking around like he owned the hospital.

Derek huffed and flipped through his schedule. It was going to be a long day. He had meetings in the morning, and appointments in the afternoon. Oh and terrific, he had Mrs. Hansen’s daughter, Agnes at 1:00. She was a nightmare.

Derek continued skimming through his schedule and his eyes brightened when he saw who his 3:30 appointment was.

Stiles Stilinski and Isaac Stilinski. 

Derek bit back a smile, because he knew that Dr. Graham hated anything happy before 8 in the morning. Derek rushed to his office and double-checked to make sure that he really got to see Stiles and his son Isaac today. 

He did. 

Today was going to be a great day.

Stiles and Isaac were enough to make up for all of the annoying children and their parents that Derek knew he would have to deal with today. Stiles and Isaac made everything worth it. 

Stiles was Derek’s mate. He had known that from the moment he became Isaac’s pediatrician. Stiles smelled like home and was really cute in an awkward sort of way. Every time Derek saw him, his wolf howled with pleasure.

Another plus was that Isaac, Stiles’ son, was the most adorable thing on the planet. He was hands-down Derek’s favorite patient, and it had nothing to do with the fact that his father was Derek’s mate. Isaac was always so happy, Derek could probably diagnosis him with cancer, and Isaac would probably smile anyway. 

Derek also knew that Stiles was attracted to him. Whenever Stiles brought Isaac into the hospital, he always smelled faintly of arousal, and Derek knew that he was the cause of it. He could hear Stiles’ heartbeat increase with anticipation whenever Derek came near, and he also knew that Stiles blushed a lot whenever Derek smiled at him.

It’s a blush that Derek likes to see. 

So Derek smiles at Stiles a lot.

The worst part about the whole thing is that Derek only sees Stiles and Isaac a couple times a year. Once every 3 months in fact. Stiles will bring Isaac in whenever he is sick, so at most, Derek sees Stiles and Isaac about 6 times a year. Sure he sees them around Beacon Hills, but it’s always coming and going, and Derek doesn’t really know how to ask Stiles out on a date, while comparing the prices of toilet paper.

It’s kind of torture for Derek and his wolf. Most wolves go their whole life without finding their true mate, and they have to end up settling for a really close friend or something. Derek’s mate was right in front of him; he just had no idea how to take the next step. 

It definitely sucked on full moons, when his wolf knew that Stiles was so close yet so far. 

Needless to say, last night hadn’t been a walk in the park.

Derek really needed to have Stiles and Isaac all to himself, and he needed to do it soon.

As Derek was drinking his coffee, he pondered ways to ask Stiles out. He knew that Stiles would probably say yes, but he didn’t want to be too obvious or too cheesy. He had a reputation to uphold. A lot of the parents thought that Derek was too gruff and angry to be a pediatrician. But in reality, Derek just didn’t like dealing with their annoying, whiny kids. 

“Hale, meet us in the conference room. Pediatrics meeting in 10,” Dr. Graham’s voice buzzed in. 

Derek rolled his eyes and begrudgingly made his way to the conference room. He had until 3:30 to think of a way to see Stiles more. He could brainstorm during the meetings. He never really paid attention in them anyway. 

***

At 3:15, Derek still had no idea how he was going to ask Stiles out, or even see him more often. He was sitting in his office with his head in his hands. He had to think of something, and he had to think of something and he had to think of something quick. Barring the fact that Isaac was going to get sick, this would be the last time he saw Stiles and Isaac for another 3 months. 

Derek sighed and got up to go get Isaac from the waiting room. Maybe he could think of something on the spot.

As Derek walked down the hallway to the waiting room, he breathed deeply as his mates scent got stronger. Stiles was close. 

 _Mate._ Derek’s wolf whined. _Close._  

“Isaac?” Derek called as he opened the door to the waiting room. He scanned the room looking for the 5 year old.

“Dr. Derek!” Isaac called. Derek had less than a second to react before there was a 5 year old attached to his lower legs. Isaac had a thing for hugs. Derek didn’t mind at all. Isaac was a cute kid, and Derek had grown very fond of him, watching him grow up. 

“Hey pup,” Derek smiled, ruffling Isaac’s hair.

Derek discreetly sniffed the air, searching for Stiles’ scent. When he found it he turned to face Stiles. He was sitting in one of the chairs with a magazine. Derek grinned to himself. Stiles used the magazines in a feeble attempt to hide the blush that crept up his skin whenever Derek was near. Derek would prefer to see Stiles blushing more often, but that was a story for another day.

Derek smiled at Stiles, but Stiles was still trying to hide behind the magazine, so he didn’t see. Derek knew the blush was there though.

“Just a checkup today?” Derek asked in an effort to get Stiles to look at him.

“Oh… yeah,” Stiles stuttered, as he put the magazine down and there was that beautiful blush again. Derek tried not to smirk, but he couldn’t help it. He loved the fact that he made Stiles blush. He really did. He just wished he could do it more often.

“Alright,” Derek smiled. “We’ll be out in about 15 minutes.” Derek took one last look at Stiles before he turned his attention to Isaac.

“You ready to go Isaac?” 

“Yeah!” Isaac grinned. 

Derek smiled to himself. The kid was like the energizer bunny of joy. He was bouncing off the walls with glee. Derek didn’t know any other kids who were ever this excited to go to the hospital, but then Isaac was pretty great. 

Derek grabbed ahold of Isaac’s hand and he led him down to the pediatrics room. He asked Isaac a question that he knew would earn him a lengthy answer.  As Isaac was babbling about the planets or something, Derek’s mind was going a million miles a minute. 

He still had to figure out a way to see Stiles and Isaac on a more regular basis. He didn’t want to overwhelm Stiles by asking him on a date right of the bat. He would ease his way into it. 

“Dr. Derek, how many more check ups do I have this year?” Isaac asked. 

Derek caught his breath. That was it. Isaac was the link between him and Stiles. The reason that Derek saw Stiles on a regular basis was because Stiles kept bringing Isaac in for check ups. To see Stiles more often, all Derek had to do was find a way for Stiles to have to bring Isaac into the hospital more. 

“I don’t know pup,” Derek replied. “You’re pretty healthy, so probably no more than usual.” 

That was another problem. Isaac was healthy as a horse. Derek knew that Stiles made sure that Isaac got exercise and had a super balanced diet. If Derek was going to get Isaac into the hospital more often, he would have think outside the box.  He couldn’t diagnose Isaac with something life-threatening like cancer; that would just tear Stiles apart. He had to think of something that was relatively benign, but just bad enough to keep Isaac and Stiles coming back.

“I like coming to see you,” Isaac smiled. “You’re really nice.”

“I like you too pup,” Derek smiled back. “Let’s get started on your checkup.” 

“Can we start with the thing that squeezes my arm? That’s my favorite.” 

“Sure, we can take your blood pressure.”

As Derek went through the motions of Isaac’s check up, he was racking his brain with potential medical ailments that he could possible diagnosis Isaac with. Stiles was a great father, and it was making it really difficult.

Isaac’s blood pressure was great.

His vitals were great.

He had 20/20 vision. 

Derek shined the light in his ears; Isaac’s ears were great. 

Derek was running out of things to try. He was washing his hands and was getting ready to take Isaac back into the waiting room, when Isaac spoke up.

“Dr. Derek, are you going to listen to my heartbeat? My boyfriend Danny said that his doctor always listens to his heartbeat.” 

Derek almost jumped for joy. That was it.

“Of course we can bud,” Derek smiled, ruffling Isaac’s hair. He lifted up Isaac’s shirt and pressed the stethoscope to his chest. As Isaac’s shirt lifted, his scent wafted into Derek’s nose.

Isaac smelled sweet and light, and had just the perfect hint of Stiles. In a non-creepy way, it was very comforting.

Isaac smelled like home. 

 _Mate’s cub is our cub,_ Derek’s wolf whispered. _He smells like home because he belongs with us. He needs us, and we need him._  

As Derek listened to Isaac’s heartbeat, he started making a plan. He would ‘diagnose’ Isaac with a heart murmur. It was a bit of a stretch, but the plan should work. Isaac’s heartbeat was perfectly healthy, and if Stiles took Isaac to another doctor to get a second opinion, they would tell him that Isaac was fine. 

The nice thing about Isaac’s ‘heart murmur’ was that Derek could tell Stiles that Isaac was completely and totally fine. A lot of people had heart murmurs. All Derek had to do was tell Stiles that he wanted to see Isaac more frequently; to make sure that his ‘heart murmur’ didn’t progress.

Of course Isaac’s ‘heart murmur’ wouldn’t progress, because Isaac didn’t have a heart murmur. But neither Stiles nor Isaac had to know that. It gave Derek plenty of opportunities to see Isaac more, and ultimately he would see Stiles too. It was a win-win.

He got to see his favorite patient, and he got to see his mate.

It also gave Derek many more chances to finally ask Stiles out.

“Hey pup, I’m going to get your dad really quick,” Derek said. “I need to tell you guys something.” 

“Am I in trouble?” Isaac’s eyes started glistening. 

“No, no, pup, you’re fine,” Derek reassured. “Wait here, I’ll be right back.” 

Derek walked down the hallway, wondering if he was really going to do this. It was a blatant break in the unwritten Doctor’s code. If anyone found out that he had purposely misdiagnosed a patient in an effort to try and date the patient’s father, Derek would lose his license.

He was a half second away from scrapping the whole idea, when Derek’s wolf howled for its mate. 

Howled for Stiles.

Derek squared his shoulders and decided to go through with the plan. He had to have Stiles and Isaac at any cost. 

He put a solemn expression on his face. If he was going to do this, he had to leave no room for error. Stiles really had to believe that Isaac had a heart murmur.

“I need to see you Stiles,” Derek said softly, as he opened the door to the waiting room.

As soon as he saw the look on Stiles’ face, Derek regretted everything instantly. Stiles had a look of pure terror on his face. His heartbeat skyrocketed and Derek could smell the fear and anxiety rolling off Stiles in waves.

What kind of monster was Derek?

 _It’s ok,_ his wolf reassured him. _It will all work out in the end. Our mate will be with us in the end._

“Ok,” Stiles said, in a whisper that broke Derek’s heart. “Let’s go.”

 _The end justifies the means,_ his wolf whispered. 

Derek gave Stiles a slight nod and they walked back to the pediatrics room, where Isaac was waiting.

“Hi Dad!” he greeted, as Derek and Stiles walked back into the room.

“Hey bud,” Stiles smiled. He sat down and pulled Isaac onto his lap. Derek watched as he leaned into the back of Isaac’s neck and pressed a small kiss to his nape. 

“It’s nothing serious,” Derek started, as he sat down at his desk. He took out a folder and pretended to look through it. He needed to make this absolutely believable. “I probably should’ve told you that up front.” 

Derek heard Stiles’ pulse quicken and he tried back tracking. Things were getting a little too heated a little too quickly.  

“I’m sorry,” Derek replied, eyebrows knitting together. “I wasn’t thinking clearly.” 

“What’s wrong with my son?” Stiles shot back.

Derek winced, things were not supposed to go quite like this. He didn’t think this all the way through. He hated seeing his mate angry, sad and scared. And it was worse knowing that he was the direct reason for it. 

“It’s nothing serious,” Derek continued. “It’s just he has an irregular heartbeat. I would classify it as a level 2 heart murmur.”

Derek watched as Stiles thought deeply about what he had just said. There were a couple of logical questions that Stiles could ask, like ‘why are you just now figuring this out, you’ve been his pediatrician for years.’ But Derek was hoping that the adrenaline would keep Stiles from thinking too logically.

Derek heard Stiles’ pulse speed up again, and he noticed that he was breathing quicker and clutching Isaac tighter. All he wanted to do was scream that Isaac was fine and that Stiles was his mate. But he couldn’t. He had to play this through. He was in, and he was going to stay in until Stiles was completely and totally his. 

“So what do we do?” Stiles asked.

“Well I’d like to monitor him a little more frequently,” Derek answered. “Heart murmurs can progress, and I’d like to see him maybe once a week to make sure that his isn’t getting worse.”

“Ok, Ok,” Stiles replied. “We can do that. Every Thursday around 3, sound good? We can come right after school.”

Derek’s wolf howled with glee. _He’s coming back more often. He wants to be with us._

That sounds great,” Derek said, trying not to smile and failing miserably. The thought of seeing Stiles and Isaac once a week instead of once every 3 months was enough to make him leap with joy. “I guess I will see you guys in a week then.”

“Bye Dr. Derek!” Isaac smiled as he ran to give Derek a hug. Derek’s wolf preened when his mate’s cub wrapped his arms around Derek’s legs. 

“Bye pup,” Derek smiled as he patted Isaac’s back. “Be good to your dad for me.”

“I will,” Isaac smiled. 

“Go out to the receptionist and get a lollipop. Tell her that Dr. Derek said that you could have two for being a great patient.”

Isaac’s smile lit up the whole room, and Derek couldn’t help but smile at the 5 year old.  The next thing Derek knew, Isaac was gone, presumably to go and retrieve his lollipops.

“He’s a great kid,” Derek smiled, turning to Stiles. “Always happy. He’s one of my favorite patients.”

“Yeah, he has a tendency to just brighten everyone’s day.”

Derek heard Stiles’ heart beat start to increase. “He’s going to be ok, Stiles. Heart murmurs are harmless about 90% of the time. He’s going to be fine.” 

“Ok,” Stiles replied softly. Derek’s wolf ached to reach out and pull Stiles close, but Derek fought the urge. He needed Stiles to come to him, he didn’t want to force himself on Stiles. Stiles didn’t even know that Derek was a werewolf. So there was still that part of the problem that needed to be addressed. 

But Derek would cross that bridge when he came to it. 

Right now, things were good. He had Isaac and Stiles on an every week schedule, and that was the first step towards starting a relationship with them. 

“So I’ll see you on Thursday then,” Derek spoke, extending his hand.

“3 o’clock,” Stiles answered as he shook it. 

Derek indulged himself a little by grasping Stiles hand a little longer than he should have. Stiles had a slightly confused look on his face as he left, but Derek didn’t mind. Things were going to work out.

 _He’s going to be ours,_ Derek’s wolf preened. 

Soon.

Derek sat back in his chair and sighed, just thinking about the future that he was going to have with Stiles and Isaac. He was so excited. 

Of course Dr. Graham chose that exact moment to buzz Derek into his office. Derek groaned. Thursday couldn’t come soon enough. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So here's how this little tango is going to work. 
> 
> The chapters are going to be in groups of three, and will cycle through Derek's, Isaac's and Stiles' points of view. Each set of three chapters will essentially have the same plot, just in different POV's. So chapters 1-3 will be similar, Chapters 4-6 will be similar, etc. 
> 
> I thought about writing this as 3 separate works, but I think it'll be more fun to just rotate around. 
> 
> Also, for those of you who know who he is, Dennis will be in the next chapter. If you don't know Dennis, let me just tell you. He's great. You'll love him.


	3. Isaac

“Danny, I’ll trade you my applesauce for your pudding,” Isaac said. “It’s apple-raspberry flavored.” 

“Ok,” Danny agreed. “Today my mom packed me chocolate pudding. I know it’s your favorite.”

Isaac smiled and exchanged his applesauce with Danny. Isaac and Danny had been dating since the day after Halloween. Danny had come to class dressed up as the green power ranger and Isaac came dressed up as the blue power ranger. They had played together all day, and the next day Danny came to school with all of his Skittles from trick or treating and asked Isaac to be his boyfriend.

They had been dating ever since.

“Wanna go play on the slides?” Isaac asked, after they had finished their lunches.

“But Dennis is playing over there,” Danny frowned. “He’s going to be a meanie.”

Dennis.

Dennis was _that_ kid in the class. 

Every class had one.

Ever since Dennis had found out that Isaac and Danny were dating, he had made it his personal mission to try and steal Isaac away from Danny. He would bring extra juice boxes for himself and Isaac; he would have extra money so he could buy Isaac an ice cream cone after school. He always tagged Isaac when the class played tag. One time he had even pushed Danny out of the way so he could push Isaac on the swings.

Dennis was just creepy, and Isaac didn’t like him. He just wanted to play with Danny. Danny didn’t like Dennis either. Isaac was Danny’s boyfriend. It wasn’t Danny’s fault that Dennis had came to class dressed as a ghost on Halloween. That certainly wasn’t going to get you a boyfriend.

“Maybe we can play on the monkey bars,” Danny suggested.

“Yeah!” Isaac grinned. “Race you!”

“Ok. Ready? One…. Two…. Three GO!”

Danny and Isaac took off running from the lunch tables to the monkey bars. Isaac always ran a little faster than Danny but sometimes he would let his boyfriend win because Isaac was nice like that.

Not today though.

“I win!” Isaac smiled as Danny huffed and puffed his way over to the monkey bars. “Do you want to go first, or do you want me to go first?” 

“You go,” Danny wheezed. “I’m still tired.”

Isaac swung himself around the monkey bars and by the time he had gone across and back, Danny was ready to take his turn.

“Can I play?” a nasally voice spoke up.

“No Dennis, go away,” Danny glared. “I’m playing with Isaac today.”

“You always play with Isaac,” Dennis whined. “Ms. Allison says that you have to share.”

“I want to play with Danny right now,” Isaac tried. “Maybe we can play after school.”

“Ok,” Dennis frowned. “We can play on the slide.”

Unfortunately the bell rang, signaling that lunch was over. Isaac took Danny’s hand and they walked back to the classroom. Ms. Allison always let them have naptime after lunch, so Danny and Isaac laid their mats next to each other, grabbed their respective stuffed animals, and started drifting off to sleep. After naptime, Ms. Allison taught them about the planets. Danny and Isaac sat next to each other and held hands throughout the rest of the day.

When school was over, Danny gave Isaac a goodbye hug and ran to join the other kids at day-care. Danny’s parents didn’t get off work until 4, so he had to go to day care, but Isaac’s dad was always there right when Isaac got out of school.

As soon as he saw him, Isaac took off running.

“Dad! Dad! Today we learned about the solar system,” Isaac called as he ran over to his dad.

Isaac launched himself into his father’s waiting arms, and the next thing he knew his dad was holding him way up in the sky.

“Hey buddy!” his dad grinned, tossing Isaac skyward. “That’s so cool! Did you learn about Pluto?”

“No,” Isaac frowned. “Ms. Allison says that Pluto isn’t a planet anymore.”

“Pluto is totally a planet, trust me.”

“Ok,” Isaac grinned. His dad was way smarter than Ms. Allison anyway. “Dad, do I have a doctor’s appointment today?”

Before Isaac had gone to school that morning, he saw that the days date on the calendar had ‘Isaac, DR. Appt.’ in big red letters written on it. Isaac had been excited for it all day.

Isaac’s doctors name was Dr. Derek and he was the coolest. He was almost as cool as his dad, but not quite. Dr. Derek was always really nice to Isaac. He gave him hugs and he called him ‘pup’ and he was always smiling whenever Isaac came in the room. Plus he gave Isaac extra lollipops without telling his dad.

Isaac really liked that part.

A lot of the kids in Isaac’s class said that Dr. Derek was a grumpy head, but Isaac never listened to them. Dr. Derek was the best. He wasn’t a grumpy head at all. Maybe the other kids in his class were just too dumb and Dr. Derek didn’t like them. Dr. Derek liked Isaac and that was all that mattered. 

“You sure do. Are you excited to see Dr. Derek?”

Isaac slipped his hand into his dad’s and walked towards the car.

“Yeah, I love him,” Isaac smiled. “He gives me lollipops.

His dad had a funny look on his face. Isaac was pretty sure that his dad liked Dr. Derek too. He was always turning red whenever he was next to him. But that was silly. His dad couldn’t like Dr. Derek.

Dr. Derek didn’t give his dad lollipops.

“Come on dad, we’re going to be late!”

Isaac rolled his eyes as his dad finally started the car. On the way to the hospital Isaac thought about how much fun he was going to have at his appointment. Hopefully Dr. Derek would do a lot of tests on him. Isaac’s favorite was the sticky thingy that squeezed his arm real tight. Isaac liked it because he could feel his heart beat through his arm.

Once they got to the waiting room, Isaac found his favorite train set and started playing with it while he waited for Dr. Derek. Usually Dr. Derek was already waiting for him in the waiting room, but maybe he was running a little late today. Ms. Allison said that doctors were really important and that they were always busy.

“Isaac?” a voice called, snapping Isaac out of his play. Isaac turned his head to where the voice came from.

“Dr. Derek!” Isaac shouted. His train set became a distant memory, and he hurtled himself towards the doctor.

Dr. Derek didn’t pick Isaac up and twirl him around like his dad did, but he did lean down and ruffle Isaac’s hair.

“Hey pup,” Dr. Derek smiled.

Isaac grinned into Dr. Derek’s legs. He really liked Dr. Derek.

“Just a check up today?” Dr. Derek asked.

It took Isaac a while to realize that Dr. Derek wasn’t talking to him.

“Oh… yeah,” Isaac’s dad stammered. Isaac noticed that his dad was blushing _again._ Maybe his dad liked Dr. Derek too. Maybe they could start dating like Isaac and Danny. That would be so cool. Then Isaac wouldn’t have to wait to see Dr. Derek every three months. He would get to see him every day!

“Alright,” Dr. Derek smiled at Isaac’s dad. “We’ll be out in about 15 minutes. You ready to go Isaac?”

Isaac was shaking he was so excited.

“Yeah!”

Dr. Derek took Isaac’s hand and led him to the pediatrics room. As they were walking down the hallway, Isaac decided to tell Dr. Derek about his day at school.

“I traded my applesauce with my boyfriend Danny, and then we played on the monkey bars,” Isaac rambled. He was looking up at Dr. Derek with a huge smile on his face. Dr. Derek looked like he was thinking about something else, so Isaac kept talking. 

“Then this weird kid named Dennis wanted to play with us, but Danny said no. And then it was naptime, and then we learned about the planets. My teacher, Ms. Allison says that Pluto isn’t a planet, but my dad says it is.”

Dr. Derek led Isaac into the pediatrics room and motioned for Isaac to sit down on the examining bench.

“Dr. Derek, how many more check ups do I have this year?”

“I don’t know pup. You’re pretty healthy, so probably no more than usual.”

Isaac frowned slightly. He liked coming to visit Dr. Derek. He thought Dr. Derek was a pretty cool guy. Isaac wished that he could have check ups more often. That way he would get to see Dr. Derek more.

“I like coming to see you,” Isaac smiled. “You’re really nice.”

“I like you too pup,” Dr. Derek smiled back. “Let’s get started on your check up.” 

Isaac grinned in anticipation. He loved check ups. He was so excited.

“Can we start with the thing that squeezed my arm?” He asked. “That’s my favorite.”

“Sure, we can take your blood pressure.”

As Dr. Derek put the squeezy thing on Isaac’s arm, Isaac patiently held his breath. He wanted the squeezy thing to squeeze his arm extra long because he liked how it felt so much.

Dr. Derek smiled and ruffled Isaac’s hair as the machine started to work. Isaac beamed and leaned into his touch.

Dr. Derek was the coolest. 

Soon the check up was just about over, Dr. Derek had looked in Isaac’s ears, he had shined the really bright light in Isaac’s eyes and Isaac had read every single letter on the chart on the far wall in the room. 

Isaac didn’t want the check up to end, and he could tell that Dr. Derek was getting a little restless himself. In an effort to make the check up last a little bit longer; Isaac decided to ask a question.

“Dr. Derek, are you going to listen to my heartbeat? My boyfriend Danny said that his doctor always listens to his heartbeat.”

“Of course we can bud,” Dr. Derek smiled. He ruffled Isaac’s hair again and it made Isaac feel on top of the world. Dr. Derek lifted Isaac’s shirt up and pressed the cold circle thingy to Isaac’s chest.

Isaac gasped and giggled at how cold it was. But he closed his eyes and let Dr. Derek listen to his heartbeat. Plus Danny told him that if he listened hard enough then he could hear his heartbeat too.

Isaac listened closely and sure enough, he could hear his heart beat. 

_Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub._

Isaac grinned to himself. His heartbeat sounded cool.

“Hey pup, I’m going to get your dad really quick,” Dr. Derek said. “I need to tell you guys something.”

Isaac realized that the expression on Dr. Derek’s face was not a happy one, so Isaac thought that he had done something wrong. He felt his eyes start to water because he didn’t want Dr. Derek to be mad at him.

“Am I in trouble?” Isaac whispered.

“No, no, pup you’re fine,” Dr. Derek said softly. “Wait here, I’ll be right back.”

As Dr. Derek left to go find his Dad, Isaac relaxed. Dr. Derek had told him that he was fine, so Isaac didn’t have anything to worry about. It’s not like Dr. Derek would lie to Isaac.

The next thing Isaac knew, Dr. Derek and his dad were back in the room.

“Hi dad!” Isaac smiled brightly.

“Hey bud,” his dad smiled back. Isaac felt himself being lifted up and placed on his father’s lap. He smiled and giggled when he felt his dad kiss the back of his neck.

Isaac started fiddling with his shirt as his dad and Dr. Derek started talking. They did this a lot after Isaac’s check ups. It would be over soon and Isaac could get his lollipop.

“What’s wrong with my son?” Isaac’s dad said sharply. 

Isaac froze. No wait, Dr. Derek said that he was fine? He wasn’t sick? He was healthy. Dr. Derek said so, and Dr. Derek never lied. 

“It’s nothing serious,” Dr. Derek answered. “It’s just he has an irregular heartbeat. I would classify it as a level 2 heart murmur.”

Isaac was confused. His heart didn’t murmur. It sounded like this: _Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub._

What was Dr. Derek talking about?

“So what do we do?” Isaac’s dad asked.

“Well I’d like to monitor him a little more frequently. Heart murmurs can progress, and I’d like to see him maybe once a week to make sure that his isn’t getting worse.”

“Ok, ok. We can do that,” Isaac’s dad answered. “Every Thursday around 3, sound good? We can come after school.”

About 95% of that exchange went in one ear and out the other for Isaac. As soon as he heard that he would get to see Dr. Derek every Thursday, he was the happiest kid on the planet.

“That sounds great,” Dr. Derek said. And he looked almost as happy as Isaac did “ I guess I will see you guys in a week then.”

Isaac was so excited.

“Bye Dr. Derek,” he cheesed. He loosened himself from his dad’s grip and ran to give Dr. Derek a hug. He pressed his face into Dr. Derek’s inner thigh and held onto his legs tightly. Isaac didn’t really want to let Dr. Derek go.

“Bye pup,” Dr. Derek smiled. He reached down and patted Isaac’s back. “Be good to your dad for me.”

“I will,” Isaac smiled. He would do pretty much anything for Dr. Derek. He would even give Dr. Derek his dessert if Dr. Derek asked him for it.

“Go out to the receptionist and get a lollipop,” Dr. Derek said. “Tell her that Dr. Derek said that you could have two for being a great patient.”

Isaac couldn’t grin wide enough. He took off out of the room and ran to the waiting room.

Two lollipops in one day AND he got to see Dr. Derek next week? 

Today had been a great day. 


	4. Stiles

On the way home from the hospital, Stiles was a little bit of a nervous wreck.

Ok. Fine.

He was a nervous wreck.

He was scared. He had always made sure that Isaac was always so healthy. He made his lunches, he limited Isaac’s junk food, and he made sure that Isaac went to the park and got some fresh air on the weekends. How could Isaac have a heart murmur?

Stiles glanced at his son in the rearview mirror. Isaac was sucking on one of his lollipops and was singing softly while looking out the window. He looked so peaceful and relaxed, and Stiles would do anything for him.

It just wasn’t fair.

Once they got home, Stiles took out his cell phone and was seconds away from calling Jenny. He needed to know if heart murmurs ran in her family. It couldn’t have been Stiles’ fault that Isaac had gotten a heart murmur, so it must have been Jenny’s. Maybe heart murmurs ran in her family.

It could be a recessive gene or something.

Like there were recessive genes for redheads and green eyes, maybe Jenny was predisposed to heart murmurs. She had already fucked up Isaac’s life enough by leaving; why not pour salt in the wounds by giving him a heart murmur?

Stiles sighed and put the phone down. At the end of the day calling Jenny wouldn’t accomplish anything. Stiles refused to give Jenny any updates about Isaac. She had walked out of both of their lives, and Stiles wasn’t about to give her a reason to try and come back in.

Besides, Derek had said that Isaac would be ok. And Stiles trusted Derek with both his life and Isaac’s life. If Dr. Derek said that Isaac would be fine, then Isaac would be fine.

Derek had no reason to lie about anything.

“What do you want for dinner Isaac?”

“Chicken nuggets!” Isaac called from the play room. “And tots!”

Stiles bit back a grin. He should’ve seen that one coming from a mile away, anytime Stiles asked Isaac what he wanted for dinner, Isaac would _always_ ask for chicken nuggets and tater tots. Personally Stiles detested both of the choices because they were full of preservatives and who knows what else, but on special occasions, Stiles would fold and make mountains of chicken nuggets and tater tots for him and Isaac.

YOLO right?

Stiles preheated the oven and grabbed the food from the freezer. He distributed it evenly on some baking sheets and went to go find Isaac in the playroom.

“Hey buddy,” Stiles said, as he leaned against the doorframe. “What are you doing?”

“Playing with Lincoln logs. Do you want to play?”

“Maybe in a little bit,” Stiles answered. “I’m making dinner right now, but maybe we can play after?”

“Ok,” Isaac agreed amiably. “Is there BBQ sauce for the nuggets?”

“Sure is,” Stiles smiled softly.

“Mmmmmm. I like BBQ sauce.” 

“Hey, Isaac.” Stiles said softly, his voice barely above a whisper.

“Yeah?”

“I love you.”

“I love you too dad,” Isaac smiled.

Fuck if that smile didn’t make everything ok.

That night, Stiles and Isaac both ate an unhealthy amount of chicken nuggets and tater tots. Stiles even let Isaac have a soda and stay up an hour past his bedtime. As Stiles was putting Isaac to bed, he pressed a quick kiss to his forehead and turned out the lights.

Things were going to be ok. They had to be.

***

During the next couple of days, Stiles spent a lot more time with Isaac. He cuddled with him a lot more, which was no small feat. Isaac was a huge cuddler; if he and Danny were in for the long run then Danny had his work cut out for him. Stiles found ways to press his ear to Isaac’s chest, and would listen to Isaac’s heartbeat. It sounded fine to him, but then again, Stiles wasn’t a pediatrician.

So what did he know?

But still, Isaac’s heartbeat sounded perfectly normal…

***

Regardless, Stiles continued bringing Isaac to the hospital for his weekly checkups. Despite his fierce paternal instinct telling him that Isaac was fine and was perfectly ok, Stiles diligently brought Isaac to Dr. Derek’s office every Thursday right after school. On the off chance that his paternal instinct was off and Isaac was actually sick, Stiles didn’t know if he could live with himself knowing that he had the opportunity to keep Isaac healthy and didn’t take it.

But the hospital visits were fine. They were fun actually. Stiles found himself looking forward to Isaac’s appointments almost as much as Isaac. The actual appointment’s didn’t take very long, Isaac and Derek would go into Derek’s office, Derek would listen to Isaac’s heartbeat, Derek would come out and say that Isaac’s heartbeat sounded fine ( _thank you paternal instincts)_ and then Derek and Stiles would talk for about 15 minutes while Isaac played with the trains. Stiles quickly realized that on appointment days, Derek spent more time talking to him than he did checking up on Isaac.

It was a little odd at first. Stiles was still a little haunted by the horror stories told by some of the members of the PTA, but little by little, Derek had opened up to him. He was actually being nicer than usual, and maybe even a little bit flirty. More than once, Stiles had caught himself stumbling over words because he had been lost in the idea that Derek Hale was actually flirting with him.

But every week, they talked about things that were more and more intimate. The first week after Isaac’s checkups, Derek had asked Stiles if he saw the baseball game last night. Of course Stiles hadn’t, but he wasn’t about to let a golden opportunity to talk to Derek pass by. So he had lied, and that sparked a 10-minute conversation of Stiles nodding every so often while Derek basically re-enacted the entire game. Stiles had never cared more about baseball during those 10 minutes than he had in his entire life.

The next week, Stiles had been munching on an apple while waiting for Isaac, and Derek came out and asked him what variety of apple it was. After getting over the initial ‘ _What kind of conversation starter is that?’_ mindset, Stiles answered, and that led to a 15 minute conversation about their favorite fruits which led to a discussion about whether or not organic apples were better than apples grown with HGH.

Week 3’s conversation was a secret boycott on broccoli which Stiles segued into a conversation about the different species of deer, week 4’s conversation was about colleges, week 5’s conversation was about first relationships, and week 6’s conversation, courtesy of Isaac, was about first kisses, Stiles had awkwardly tried getting out of that conversation, when Derek started talking about his first kiss. Stiles couldn’t tell you anything about what Derek was talking about, because he wasn’t paying attention. Stiles didn’t really care who Derek’s first kiss was. Stiles wanted to be Derek’s last kiss though. So whoever kissed Derek first could suck it.

Then Stiles got to thinking. Someone as hot as Derek had to be at least in a relationship. Right? No one that hot was single. But where Stiles had babbled about how Jenny had left him and Isaac, Derek never brought up any of his past relationships, and he didn’t mention if he was in one currently.

There was also no ring on his finger, and Stiles’ hadn’t seen any pictures of Derek with anyone else on his desk.

Maybe Derek was single.

And maybe he was flirting with Stiles.

Oh wonderful.

Stiles had the hots for his son’s pediatrician.

And maybe, just maybe, his son’s pediatrician had the hots back.

***

After a couple weeks of taking Isaac to Dr. Derek’s, Stiles started noticing that his son was looking a little glum. He had been his usual happy self, but for the past couple of days he had been sad and weighed down like something was bothering him.  He wasn’t eating as much, and his beautiful smile was showing up less and less.

“Everything ok bud?” Stiles asked one night. “You’ve been pretty quiet lately.”

“Yeah…,” Isaac answered softly.

Stiles’ parental instincts didn’t buy that at all.

“Are you sure? You haven’t been eating as much and you look a little upset.”

“I’m scared,” Isaac whispered.

“Of what bud?”

“I don’t want to die.”

Stiles felt his heart shatter. He looked at his son and saw the fear in his eyes and the worry written all over his face. All Stiles wanted to do in that moment was make sure that Isaac was ok, and would never feel like that ever again.

Fuck this heart murmur bullshit.

“Am I dying dad?”

The crack in Isaac’s voice broke made Stiles’ eyes water.

“No baby, you’re not dying.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.”

That night, Stiles slept in Isaac’s bed. He held his son close to his body, and kissed his head. He whispered how much he loved him and how everything was going to be ok.

Stiles didn’t know who he was trying to convince more, himself or Isaac.

***

The night Isaac had his nightmare was the scariest night in Stiles’ life.

***

The next hospital visit was a little awkward for Stiles. He picked up Isaac from school and was driving him to the hospital.

“Dad can we invite Dr. Derek over for dinner on Sunday?”

“Uh, why do you say that bud?” Stiles stuttered. Usually Isaac told Stiles about his day, and he told him about Danny, but he very rarely started with a question.

“Because I love him and he makes me happy!”

Stiles frowned slightly. Ever since Isaac’s most recent nightmare, and his heartbreaking admission that he didn’t want to die, Stiles had been thinking of ways to make his son a little happier. He was trying not to be too obvious, but he liked to think of himself as a sneaky father. He may or may not have given Isaac juice for dinner three days in a row.  A couple times he let Isaac stay up past his bedtime. Things had calmed down since the nightmare, but Stiles wasn’t taking any chances.

Isaac was his number one priority always, and whatever Isaac needed, Stiles would fight tooth and nail to get it for him.

And right now the poor kid needed some extra happiness in his life. So if having Derek over for dinner would help, then Stiles would have Derek over for dinner.  Of course Stiles wouldn’t mind having Derek over for dinner either.

Derek was hot.

“Sure bud, I’ll ask him after your checkup.”

“Thanks dad!”

“You got it Isaac.”

***

 After Isaac came out of the room, Stiles pulled Derek aside.

“I need to talk to you,” he started seriously. “I think this whole heart murmur thing is really starting to take a toll on my son. The other day he told me he didn’t want to die. I told him he was going to be fine but,” Stiles trailed off, struggling to find the words. “I just… I just need to hear it from you. Is he in any danger?”

If Stiles wasn’t mistaken, Derek looked a little pained. Apologetic even.

“No he isn’t,” Derek said solemnly. “I’m sorry for that too,” he continued. “Isaac has asked me in the examining room if he was going to die prior to this. I hate that he’s feeling vulnerable and scared. Apart from his heart he’s totally healthy. He’s going to be fine Stiles. I promise. I tried to tell you a couple weeks ago, but then we started talking about deer. And then the next week Isaac came in and he looked fine, so I thought things were getting better.”

“Yeah, well…” Stiles sighed, “Obviously they got worse again,. Thank you though. For telling me he’s going to be ok, I mean. I really needed to hear that from someone else. I keep thinking that there’s nothing wrong with him, but then I think about how sudden heart attacks can happen, and if he already has a heart murmur, I just get scared sometimes. I can’t lose him.”

“You won’t lose him Stiles. He’s going to be fine.”

Stiles smiled back at Derek. “Right, anyway I kinda promised Isaac that I would invite you over for dinner. In case you hadn’t noticed he really likes you. So it would make the both of us very happy if you came over to our house for dinner say Sunday night.”

As soon as Stiles saw the quirk in Derek’s eyebrow, he realized his slip. Derek wasn’t supposed to know that Stiles thought he was sex on legs. Of course Derek probably had an idea, but Stiles didn’t want to go around publicly advertising that he wanted to do the nasty with his son’s pediatrician.

Way to go Stiles.

Oh well, maybe Derek hadn’t noticed that part of the sentence.

“You want me there too?” Derek questioned.

Of course Derek noticed that part of the sentence. 

“I mean, yeah,” Stiles said, scratching the back of his head. “You’re really great with Isaac, and we’ve been getting pretty close the last couple of weeks.” _Really Stiles?_ “And I figure if you get bored watching Disney movies with Isaac you could always talk to me.” _Just stop talking Stiles._ “So dinner on Sunday? Around 7?”

“Sounds great, I’ll bring cake.” 

Stiles didn’t know who was more excited that Derek was coming over for dinner. 

Him or Isaac. 


	5. Isaac

Ever since Dr. Derek told him and his dad that he had a heart murmur, Isaac had been very, very careful. He didn’t like being sick, and he wanted his heart murmur to go away. Even though Dr. Derek had said that he had nothing to worry about, Isaac didn’t want to take any chances. What if his heart murmur got worse and turned in to cooties or something worse? Isaac didn’t want that to happen at all.

He had to get better. He had no choice.

The day after his checkup, Isaac told Danny that his heart was in trouble. Danny, being the great boyfriend that he was, was incredibly supportive and caring. 

“Take my orange,” Danny had said, “It’s full of Vitamin C, and that will help your heart I think.” 

“But I don’t have any fruit to trade,” Isaac said sadly.

“That’s ok,” Danny replied. “I just want you to get better.”

Isaac had the best boyfriend ever.

Danny was supportive of Isaac’s condition in other ways too. At recess all the other kids wanted to play tag, but Danny didn’t want Isaac to play.  

“I don’t want you to run too much, and hurt your heart,” Danny said softly. He held Isaac’s hand as they sat at the picnic tables. “I don’t want anything to happen to you.”

“Me either,” Isaac whispered back. He squeezed Danny’s hand a little tighter and rested his head on Danny’s shoulder. 

“Hi guys,” Dennis interrupted. “Isaac do you want to play tag with us?” 

“Go away Dennis!!’ Danny shouted. “I’m gonna tell.”

“I’m not doing anything wrong. You always hog Isaac, Danny. I want to play with him too.” 

“Isaac is my boyfriend,” Danny replied icily, eyes narrowing. “Go away.”

“Please go away Dennis,” Isaac said softly. “I don’t want to play right now. I want to hang out with Danny.”

“You never want to hang out with me,” Dennis pouted. 

“You’re creepy,” Isaac said softly, and Danny vigorously nodded his agreement. 

“Fine,” Dennis grumbled. “But one day you’re gonna be my friend Isaac. I swear damn it.” 

Isaac’s eyes widened.

“Ooooooh,” Danny called. “You said a bad word!”

Dennis ran away after that and he didn’t bother Isaac and Danny for the rest of the day. 

***

At first Isaac enjoyed that everyone was being a little nicer to him. Danny would bring him extra fruit for lunch, and his dad would let him stay up a little later on school nights, but soon it began to get a little tedious. It was like Isaac was made of glass and everyone was scared he was going to break.

He had a heart murmur, not cancer.

Besides, Dr. Derek said that heart murmurs were harmless about 90% of the time. Isaac was pretty sure that he wasn’t going to be that guy that had the fatal heart murmur. 

He just wanted to be treated normally.

But as the days went on, Isaac was seriously beginning to think that something was wrong with him. Maybe heart murmurs were more serious than he thought. His dad had been cuddling a lot more, and they had been eating a lot healthier than usual. Isaac didn’t mind the healthy eating, but he was pretty sure that as a 5 year old he was allowed to have a juice box on weekends.

At least a Capri-Sun or something.

Maybe some Juicy Juice. 

He was also really getting tired of broccoli.

The point was Isaac was tired of people treating him like he was going to break. He felt fine. Sometimes he got tired if he ran for a long time or and sometimes his face got a little red if he laughed too much, and sure he might start sweating if he played four-square too hard, but he wasn’t going to keel over and die. Between Danny and his dad, Isaac felt like a porcelain doll. Isaac knew that they both wanted him to be ok, but they were starting to suffocate him a little bit. 

He needed some space.

It got to the point where Isaac was having trouble falling asleep, he was thinking so much. He was perfectly fine, but it seemed like everyone on the planet thought that he was going to shatter into a million little pieces every time he started sweating. At least Dr. Derek still acted normal. 

Isaac really loved that guy. 

During his checkups, Dr. Derek would ask Isaac about his day at school. He would ask Isaac about Danny and he would tell Isaac about all the cool charts that were hanging up in his office. It was nice actually.

Isaac started looking forward to the checkups more and more. 

One time he even told Dr. Derek that he was his favorite.

***

“You’re my favorite, Dr. Derek.” Isaac smiled. They had just gotten done doing the squeezy arm thingy, and Dr. Derek was sitting at his desk on the computer. “I love you the best.”

“Thanks pup.” Dr. Derek said. Isaac couldn’t see his face, but he was pretty sure Dr. Derek was smiling back. “But what about your dad and Danny? Won’t they be sad?” 

“Maybe,” Isaac muttered, crinkling his nose. “But they won’t leave me alone. They treat me different, and I don’t like it. Dad is starting to feed me nothing but broccoli. And I like broccoli, just not every night. And Danny won’t let me play duck-duck goose, because he doesn’t want me to get tired.”

“Hey that means they love you,” Dr. Derek reassured. He came over and sat down in front of Isaac and wrapped his arm around Isaac’s smaller frame. Isaac leaned into Dr. Derek’s embrace. As he was nestled in Dr. Derek’s arms, Isaac started to feel a little better.

Dr. Derek felt safe. 

Dr. Derek would make everything ok. 

“I don’t want to die Dr. Derek,” Isaac whispered softly. “I just want to get better.”

“You’re gonna be fine pup. You’re not going to die. I promise.”

"That's what my dad says, but he keeps feeding me broccoli."

Dr. Derek laughed, low and rich. Isaac liked his laugh. It was a lot different from his dad’s laugh; he didn’t know why, but hearing Dr. Derek laugh made him smile.

“Tell you what, I’ll tell your dad that you’re fine, and I’ll ask him to stop feeding you so much broccoli.” 

“Deal,” Isaac smiled. “You’re the best Dr. Derek.”

That night for dinner, Isaac’s dad made carrots.

***

Sometimes Isaac still had nightmares.

Even though things were finally starting to settle down and return to some semblance of normalcy, every now and then Isaac would get scared that he was going to die. 

One night he dreamed that his heart was murmuring and everyone could hear it but himself. He would walk around school and everyone would tell him to make his heartbeat normal. 

And he tried.

_He tried so hard._

But he couldn’t.

His heartbeat kept beating weird, and people kept looking at him funny, and finally his heart exploded. 

Isaac woke up in a cold sweat and started screaming for his dad. 

His dad rushed into the room and cuddled Isaac. He wrapped him into his chest and pressed soft kisses into Isaac’s hair. 

“I love you so much,” his dad whispered. “Everything is going to be ok. I promise.” 

Isaac fell asleep listening to his dad’s rhythmic heartbeat, and he wished with all his might that his heart could beat normal too.

*** 

During parent teacher conferences, Ms. Allison said that Isaac was one of the smartest kids in her class. Isaac knew that this was true because he did the best on all the spelling tests and science tests. Erica did the best on the math tests, ~~but she cheated.~~ Danny usually did pretty well on the tests too. And Dennis just did really bad in general.

So Isaac knew that he was a pretty smart kid. And he was pretty sure that his dad was in love with Dr. Derek. He was always talking to him about random stuff after Isaac’s checkups. And Isaac knew that his dad only talked about random stuff to people he liked.  Like there was this one time in the store when Isaac had to rescue a pretty lady from his dad because he was talking about the different varieties of hummingbirds. So by the time Isaac heard his dad and Dr. Derek talking about broccoli and deer, he was about 60% that his dad loved Dr. Derek. When they started talking about first kisses, Isaac was about 99.9% sure that his dad loved Dr. Derek. Which was cool, because Isaac loved Dr. Derek too. 

But Isaac was pretty sure that his dad and Dr. Derek loved each other the way he loved Danny.   

“Maybe you should tell your dad to ask Dr. Derek to come over for dinner,” Danny said.

They were sitting on the edge of the sandbox, during recess. Isaac was telling Danny about his most recent check up. Danny was trying to give Isaac his apple, but Isaac didn’t want it. About two weeks ago, Isaac told Danny that he was fine and since then Danny hadn’t been as protective of Isaac, but he still tried to force him to eat fruit every now and then.

“Do you think that will work?” Isaac asked. “My dad can be kind of silly sometimes. Remember that time he came to pick me up from your sleepover, and he talked to your mom about breakfast cereals?”

“Oh yeah,” Danny giggled. “My dad told me to tell him if your dad every talked to my mom like that ever again. He said that ‘they will have words.’ But I don’t really know what that means.” 

Danny and Isaac both laughed at the thought of Danny’s dad getting into an argument. Danny’s parents, Ms. Lydia and Mr. Jackson, were always nice to Isaac, but there was something about Isaac’s dad that just pushed their buttons. Especially Mr. Jackson. 

“But I think it would be fun if Dr. Derek came over for dinner,” Isaac said thoughtfully. 

“Then ask your dad to ask him,” Danny reiterated. “He’ll probably say yes.”

“Ok,” Isaac said. “I’ll ask him when he picks me up from school today.”

“Cool,” Danny answered. “What do you want to play on today?” 

“Let’s play on the slide!” Isaac grinned. “Race you!” 

This time Isaac let Danny win.

***

Isaac hoped Dr. Derek was going to bring red velvet cake. That was his favorite. 


	6. Derek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry if these chapters don't quite match up. I really tried. :/

If he was completely honest with himself, Derek was straddling the fence. On one hand he was completely pleased with himself but on the other, he was disgusted with himself. 

On one side, Derek’s little white lie had gone off completely well. Stiles had totally bought the fact that Isaac had a heart murmur. The past 3 Thursdays had been a pretty good indication of that. Derek loved that he was able to see his mate more often. It was a lot easier to talk to Stiles in the hospital than the random times he saw him around Beacon Hills.

And ever since Stiles started bringing Isaac in more often, Derek was finding it easier to talk to Stiles during those random encounters.

So that side was pretty great. 

On the other side, Derek hated that he had to lie to Stiles to get to see him more often. More importantly he hate that he had to involve Isaac in the lie. Derek knew that Isaac was the most important part of Stiles’ life. Even though Stiles smiled every time he brought Isaac into the hospital, Derek could smell the slight scent of fear. Like Stiles knew that this could be the last time that he saw Isaac. 

Derek just wished he could tell Stiles the way he felt about him and they could put this whole ordeal behind them. But of course, Derek would back out every time he and Stiles started talking about anything remotely serious. 

So that side was not as great.

Regardless, seeing Stiles and Isaac made Derek a lot happier. He wasn’t nearly as grumpy towards the other patients, and even Dr. Graham was annoying him less and less. Derek chalked his good demeanor up to the fact that since he knew that he had Stiles and Isaac to look forward to every week, nothing really mattered as much.

In fact, Derek and Stiles started talking a lot more. Of course they had talked before they started showing up every week, but it had always felt a little formal and forced. Like they were both nervous about something.

Derek had been nervous because Stiles was his mate and he didn’t want to say anything stupid to make Stiles think he was an idiot. 

And based on the scents that Stiles was giving off, Derek assumed that Stiles was nervous because he was aroused and he found Derek attractive.

At least they always had Isaac to ease the tension. God he was a cute kid. Derek even brought more trains into the waiting room so Isaac could play with them while he talked to Stiles. It was like a win-win-win.

Derek was happy that he was talking to Stiles. _Win._  

Based on the way he smelled, Stiles was happy that he was talking to Derek. _Win. Win._

And it didn’t take a rocket scientist to know that Isaac was happy that he had a new train to play with every week.  _Win. Win. Win._  

Anyway, Stiles and Derek had been talking a lot. Technically Stiles was always doing most of the talking, and Derek was just trying to say things to keep the conversation going. He had started spending his nights on Wikipedia just reading random articles in an effort to increase his knowledge of random facts. He wanted to be prepared in case Stiles came in and wanted to talk about the Banana trade in Belize.

Yes, the conversations had gotten that random.

Derek didn’t mind though. He was just enjoying spending time with his mate. 

***

One of the downsides to spending so much new time with Stiles and Isaac was that Derek’s withdrawal symptoms were starting to pick up a little bit more. Back when Derek only saw Isaac and Stiles a couple times a year, his wolf would whine softly during the long periods of time that he was apart from his mate. 

But now that Derek saw them once a week, suddenly his wolf wanted to see them everyday. It was a little ridiculous. There was no way that Derek could reasonably ask Stiles to bring Isaac into the hospital every day without looking either suspicious or crazy, so his wolf was going to have to deal. Once a week was better than once every three months. And even that was better than nothing. 

It still sucked royally though.

Every time Derek saw Stiles and Isaac in the waiting room his wolf would howl with pleasure.

_Mate._

_Pup._

_Home._

But every time Stiles and Isaac said goodbye, even though Derek heard, “See you next week Dr. Derek!” Derek’s wolf didn’t get that memo, and howled long and hard when they left.

So Derek was at a little bit of a conundrum. He was happy that he was spending more time with Stiles and Isaac. His wolf was happy during the times that he spent with Stiles and Isaac, but was miserable when they were apart. Derek needed to hang out with Stiles and Isaac in a more intimate setting, preferably not in the hospital. 

Of course, Derek had absolutely no clue how to make that happen.  

***

The day Isaac told Derek that he was his favorite was one of the happiest days of Derek’s life.

The day Isaac told Derek that he didn’t want to die was without a doubt the worst day of Derek’s life.

It was also great that they happened within 30 seconds of each other.

When Isaac told Derek that he ‘loved him the best’ Derek was really glad that Isaac couldn’t see his face. He was pretty sure that his eyes flashed blue and he was probably grinning like an idiot. 

There were only three people in the world that could make Derek grin like that, his mother, Stiles and now Isaac. If Derek didn’t know that Isaac was adorable before this, he definitely knew it now.

 _Mate’s pup loves us,_ Derek’s wolf whispered. _He really loves us._

Of course Derek’s emotional high was shattered as soon as Isaac started talking about how he felt smothered by his dad and his boyfriend because of his ‘heart murmur.’

Derek felt sick to his stomach. In his haste to think of a reason to start to see Stiles more often, he didn’t take into account how his plan would affect Isaac.

Isaac was the one with the disease, and Derek had basically turned the poor kid’s life upside down. 

As Isaac told Derek about how his dad kept feeding him broccoli and Danny wouldn’t let him play with the other kids in their class, Derek never felt worse in his life. He was taking away a _5-year old’s childhood_ , just because he didn’t have the balls to ask the kid’s father out directly.

No, he had to be sneaky about the whole thing, and now Isaac was paying the price. The sadness and frustration were coming off Isaac in waves, and they were hitting Derek right in the heart. Knowing that he was the reason that Isaac was so upset was killing Derek on the inside, and his wolf whined in sorrow.

Derek felt horrible.

 _Make it right,_ his wolf whispered.

He didn’t have to be told twice.

Derek walked over and wrapped his arm around Isaac. He let his fingers graze the back of Isaac’s neck and Derek started taking some of the boy’s pain away. As the black liquid seeped into his veins, Derek sighed softly. He had to make sure that people stopped treated Isaac differently. 

Derek comforted Isaac until the end of the checkup, and when he brought him back out into the waiting room, Derek pulled Stiles aside and told him to made up a story about the broccoli recall that was about to take place. 

He was pretty sure that Stiles wasn’t going to make Isaac broccoli any time soon. 

It wasn’t quite the way Derek planned, but then Stiles started rambling about whether or not deer ate broccoli and by then it was too late for Derek too mention anything about what Isaac just said. 

At least Isaac wouldn’t have broccoli any time in the near future.

Baby steps.

*** 

Call it a hunch, but one night Derek woke up with the sudden urge to find Stiles and Isaac and comfort them. He didn’t know what was wrong, but he knew something was wrong.

His wolf was howling for his mate and his mates’ pup, and Derek was pretty shaken up too. He wanted to be there for them, but it was the middle of the night and it wasn’t like he could just call Stiles up and say, ‘Hey, by the way I’m a werewolf, and my werewolf senses are telling me that you’re upset. Is everything ok?”

Actually that would probably be better than this heart murmur mess that Derek was wrapped up in now. 

Derek sighed heavily and flopped back down on the bed.

“Stiles, Isaac, please be ok,” he whispered. 

Derek didn’t fall back asleep that night.

*** 

One Thursday, about a month and a half into the checkups, Derek was sitting in his office waiting for Stiles and Isaac to show up. He sighed and looked at his clock. 2:34. Stiles and Isaac wouldn’t be at the hospital for at least another hour.

Derek rolled his eyes fondly at the thought of his mate and his mate’s pup. He wondered what they were doing right about now. Stiles was probably finishing up at work and Isaac was probably holding hands with Danny and fighting off the little terror that was Dennis.

As the hour dragged on, Derek pulled out a pad of paper and made a list of all the things he liked about Stiles and Isaac.

 

**_ STILES. _ **

_\- MATE_

\- _great father_

_- ~~DAT BLUSH DOE~~_

_-  but really, he has the cutest blush_

_\- really cute freckles_

_\- really cute in general_

_\- smells like home_

_\- smells like arousal when he’s near me sometimes_

_- ~~want to fuck him so hard~~_

**_ ISAAC.  _ **

\- _MATE’S PUP_

_\- favorite patient ever_

_\- he’s so happy it makes me happy_

_\- he loves me_

_\- likes Thomas the Tank Engine_

_- ~~really want to fuck his dad.~~_

Derek wasn't quite sure how the last bullet points on each of his lists, but he was pretty sure that they were accurate. 

*** 

Finally Derek walked into the waiting room and was greeted by Isaac leaping into his arms.

“Hey pup,” Derek smiled as he twirled Isaac around. He made a mental note to add ‘likes to be flown around like an airplane’ to his list of what he liked about Isaac.

Derek’s wolf barked with joy at Isaac’s giggles, and Derek found himself smiling up at the laughing boy.

God he loved this kid. 

Derek put Isaac back on the ground and nodded his greeting at Stiles. Of course Stiles was blushing. Again. And he smelled faintly of arousal too. This time Derek had no doubts in his mind that it was directed at him. 

Derek took Isaac back into the pediatrics room and completed his ‘check up.’ Derek didn’t know why he bothered anymore. It’s not like he was looking for anything. He could probably talk to Isaac about his week for 20 minutes, not do a single medical procedure, and no one would be the wiser.

As Derek brought Isaac back out into the waiting room, Isaac ran back towards his trains and Stiles pulled Derek aside. Derek held his breath; this couldn’t be good.

And it wasn’t.

As Stiles told Derek all about Isaac’s latest panic attack, Derek felt the guilt that he experienced a couple of weeks ago come back up. He hated that he was causing his mate and his mate’s pup so much unnecessary stress.

Derek’s wolf whined softly as Stiles continued talking. Derek wanted nothing more in that moment than to reach out and take all of Stiles’ pain away.

Instead he kept his distance and tried to not betray too much emotion.

“…I just get scared sometimes,” Stiles was saying. “I can’t lose him.”

“You won’t lose him Stiles,” Derek promised. “He’s going to be fine.”

Derek didn’t know what else to say. He couldn’t come out and say that the whole thing was a lie, not right now. Stiles would probably never want to talk to him any more, and Derek wouldn’t blame him one bit. 

As much as he hated it, Derek would have to lie a little while longer. Who knew, maybe things would get better?

“Right, anyway I kinda promised Isaac that I would invite you over for dinner. In case you hadn’t noticed he really likes you,” Stiles smiled. “So it would make the both of us very happy if you came over to our house for dinner say Sunday night.” 

Funny how life worked.

So it was settled, Sunday night Derek was having dinner with his mate and his mate’s pup.

And he was bringing cake. 

Life was looking up. 


	7. Stiles

So Stiles had a bit of a problem.

Yes, Derek had agreed to come over for dinner, and yes, Stiles was very excited about that.

But was it a date?

It wasn’t like you asked your kid’s pediatrician to come over for dinner on a regular basis.

So it probably wasn’t a date.

But then again, Derek had looked pretty excited when Stiles invited him over for dinner. Actually pretty excited was an understatement. Derek looked like he was the happiest guy alive. His face literally lit up. Kind of like the way Isaac’s face lit up when Stiles made him chicken nuggets and tater tots.

So maybe it was a date.

But if it was a date, did Stiles need to get a babysitter for Isaac? He could probably dump him off at Danny’s house for the night. It wasn’t like he needed to worry about Isaac having sex with Danny or anything either. The boys were 5.

Realistically though, Stiles knew that he couldn’t drop Isaac off. Isaac knew that Derek was coming over for dinner on Sunday, and there was no way that Isaac was going to miss having Dr. Derek in his own house.

Consequently, Isaac was staying.

So it wasn’t a date.

Maybe? 

***

Stiles and Isaac were watching Balto; it was one of Isaac’s favorite movies. And Stiles would be lying if he said he didn’t enjoy watching Balto run across the snow. He liked to mess with Isaac and _say_ that he didn’t like the movie, deep down Stiles secretly enjoyed it. Hey, Balto was a pretty attractive wolf-dog.

Isaac was nodding off in Stiles’ embrace. He was an adorable kid and he was even more adorable when he slept. Isaac murmured something, and Stiles pressed a soft kiss into his hair.

That’s when he heard the howl. 

It wasn’t a loud howl, kind of quiet actually. And it sounded like it was coming from the trees. Which was ridiculous, because wolves couldn’t climb trees.

Stiles looked out the window, trying to catch a glimpse of the tree-climbing wolf, but all he saw was branches swinging gently in the breeze.

Stiles huffed and started to put Isaac to bed.

***

Friday was an interesting day for Stiles. He had work, but he couldn’t really focus. Granted he didn’t usually focus at work, but this particular Friday was just really messing with Stiles’ head. He just couldn’t get his ‘not-date’ with Derek out of his head.

Stiles worked at the library, at the front desk to be more specific. Occasionally he held story hour for the kids that were too young to be in school, but for the most part he spent his days browsing the internet and bantering with his coworker Erica.

“Hey Erica, can I ask you something?”

“Shoot.”

“How do you know if a guy likes you?” 

“Before of after my clothes are off?”

Stiles snorted. Of course leave it to Erica to make it all about sex. Who wears a mini-dress to work at the library? Erica Reyes, that’s who. Stiles couldn’t wrap his head around it. Their clientele was mostly made up of men and women in their mid to late 60’s. They were looking for books, not sex.

“You didn’t have sex with Boyd right off the bat, and you guys have been together for a couple years now. So I guess before your clothes are off.” 

“Boyd gets me,” Erica replied. “Like he really gets me. I could come home in a poncho and mom jeans, and he would still think I was the most beautiful woman on the planet.”

“So he wants to bang you, that’s great,” Stiles said, rolling his eyes. “But you care about him right? And he cares about you? How do you know that?”

“Have you always been this big of a sap Stilinski? Derek likes you. You like Derek. Point blank, period. What’s going on?” 

“What the- how do you know this is about Derek?!” Stiles sputtered.

“Who else could it be?” Erica replied airily, adjusting the top of her dress so it showed, if possible, more cleavage.

“I.. I could’ve met someone somewhere!” Stiles tried. “You don’t know my life!”

“For the past 6 weeks I have heard nothing out of your mouth except how great and sexy Dr. Derek Hale is. You told me that you guys talk about broccoli and deer, and you told him about Jenny being your first everything. Trust me Stilinski, anyone who willingly talks to you about broccoli likes you.”

“You’d talk to me about broccoli,” Stiles pouted.

“Nope, no I wouldn’t,” Erica smirked. “ _You_ would talk to me about broccoli, and I would ignore you like I usually do. Eventually you would tire yourself out, take a 15 minutes break and talk to me about something else.”

Stiles pursed his lips. She had a point. “So you think Derek really likes me?”

“Do I have to spell it out for you? He’s coming to dinner at your house on Sunday. He adores your son. He’s not a terror to you in the hospital like he is to the majority of the parents in Beacon Hills. I don’t think the signs could be any clearer.”

“Ok fine. So he likes me. How do I show him that I like him back?”

“Wanna know what I did to Boyd?”

“No, no thank you.”

*** 

Stiles dropped Isaac off at Danny’s house Saturday morning. Even though the two boys were barely 5, they insisted that their love was pure and they were going to be together forever. Stiles thought it was cute, and it wouldn’t hurt if Jackson and Lydia helped pay for the wedding.

After smiling at Lydia and making sarcastic gestures at Jackson, Stiles returned home. He didn’t know what he wanted to do. He was restless because Derek would be knocking on his door in about 29 hours and 34 minutes, give or take.

Stiles fell onto the couch and groaned aloud. He thought about his ‘not-date, but probably a date’ with Derek tomorrow and groaned again. He should probably take Erica’s advice and treat tomorrow night like a date. Isaac could be the awkward 5-year-old third wheel. He would probably be so excited that Dr. Derek would be in the house he would hardly notice if Stiles did or did not press a small kiss to Derek’s perfect cheekbones.

Stiles muffled a groan into a pillow.

He was so screwed.

***

So if this was a date, should he dress up? Should he dress down? Should he call Derek and ask him what he was wearing? He obviously wasn’t going to order take out, but what should he make?

So many questions, so little time.

In retrospect he probably shouldn’t have waited until Saturday night to start planning all this.

“Are you ok dad?” Isaac asked. 

Stiles looked around and realized he had been pacing throughout the house. So maybe Isaac was a little perceptive. Whatever. His grandfather was the Sheriff, obviously the private eye gene had skipped a generation. Stiles looked into his son’s questioning eyes and sighed softly.

“Yeah I’m fine buddy. I just don’t know what to make Dr. Derek for dinner.”

“Meatloaf and green beans? And mashed potatoes?” 

Stiles almost rolled his eyes. Of course. Derek seemed like a meat and potatoes kind of guy. Beneath the stethoscope and the hospital scrubs was a rugged man, who probably had to shave every morning and ran 3 miles every day before work. And Stiles was getting off topic. He had been thinking that he needed to go to the Whole Foods Market and pick up some salmon and filet mignon to appease Dr. Derek’s high-class doctor taste buds. But leave it to Isaac to point out the obvious. 

Dr. Derek was here to see Stiles and Isaac. He probably wouldn’t even care if Stiles ordered pizza. It should say something when your 5 year-old son knows more about your date than you do.

“That sounds good,” Stiles smiled. “You’re the best buddy.”

***

As a reward for coming up with what to have for dinner, Stiles let Isaac help in the kitchen. Seemed like a fair trade.

***

Sunday afternoon found Stiles sitting on his bed desperately looking through his closet. He had no idea what to wear? 

How do you dress for a date with your kid’s pediatrician? He didn’t know if he wanted to go dressy: a dress shirt and slacks and shoes, semi-casual: a button down and jeans and socks, or super casual: a t-shirt, jeans and bare feet.

He decided on semi-casual.

That was probably the safest bet.

*** 

Derek Hale was in his house. 

Stiles took a breath. He was going to take Erica’s advice. This was a date. Stiles liked Derek and Derek liked Stiles. And by the end of the night Stiles would either be dating Derek or finding a new pediatrician.   

*** 

Derek Hale was in his kitchen. 

With a huge cake. 

And he looked _fine_ in his all black attire. Operation: Date my son’s pediatrician was starting now. 

***

Stiles looked across the table as Derek sat next to Isaac. He wasn’t going to lie; he felt a small twinge of jealousy as his son scooted his chair closer to Derek. But as he watched Derek scoop mashed potatoes and green beans onto Isaac’s plate and cut him ruffle his hair affectionately, Stiles relented. Going off Derek’s blush from earlier, the operation was working like a charm. 

Derek was a great guy, and Stiles was lucky that Derek felt so strongly about Isaac. If Derek and Isaac hated each other, then there would be no question in Stiles’ mind. Derek would have to go. But as he looked across the table at the interaction of two of the most important people in his life, Stiles couldn’t help but smile. 

Things were very, very good right now.

*** 

“So this cake was actually really good. Are you sure it’s not store-bought?” Stiles asked. He and Derek had just finished putting Isaac to bed and were standing in the kitchen eating another slice of cake. 

“I just followed the recipe,” Derek admitted. He rubbed the back of his head in a gesture that looked sheepish, almost embarrassed, and Stiles wanted to take him right then and there.

“So was this a date?” Stiles asked. He was pretty sure it had been a date; he just wanted the actual conformation from Derek. “Because I had a lot of fun tonight, and I just don’t invite anyone into my home.”

“I’d like it if it was a date,” Derek replied softly. “I would like that very much.” 

“Then it was a date,” Stiles said, taking a step forward so he was inches away from Derek. “You should probably kiss me now to make it official.”

Derek put his cake down and placed both of his hands gently on Stiles face. He offered Stiles a small smile before kissing him softly. 

Stiles pretty much melted. It was a nice kiss. Sweet, but full of passion. Stiles allowed Derek to suck on his lower lip, while he wrapped his arms around Derek’s waist. As Stiles was kissing Derek, he imagined a future with the other man. 

Maybe moving in together.

Maybe adopting a little brother or sister for Isaac. 

Maybe getting married.

It was all so surreal, but for now, Stiles just enjoyed kissing Derek. That was all that mattered right now.

“I don’t know about you,” Stiles grinned when they broke apart. “But I think you’re my boyfriend.”

***

Stiles didn’t want Derek to go. 

“You have work tomorrow Stiles,” Derek said gently.

“So,” Stiles whined. He sounded a little pathetic and he knew it. But it wasn’t fair. He just got a new boyfriend and now it was like he was giving him back. “Stay. Please.”

“I can’t,” Derek chuckled. “Unless you want to explain to Isaac why I’m still here tomorrow morning.”

“Fine,” Stiles pouted.

“I’ll see you soon,” Derek said softly, kissing Stiles before he walked to the door. “I promise.”

*** 

Stiles slept like a baby that night. 


	8. Isaac

Isaac really liked cuddling. And he liked popcorn. And he loved his dad. So the night after his checkup, when his dad announced that they were going to have a movie night, Isaac was very, very glad. 

He snuggled up against his dad’s chest, and wrapped himself in blankets. He even convinced his dad to let them watch Balto. For some reason his dad didn’t like that movie. Isaac didn’t really know why. Balto was the coolest. 

And wolves were the coolest too. 

***

Ms. Allison always told him that he was a happy camper. But that was weird because Isaac had never camped a day in his life. One time he and his dad put up a tent in the living room, but he had never gone to an actual camp site before. 

Anyway, Isaac was feeling pretty happy on Friday. He was excited that Dr. Derek was going to come over to his house and have dinner on Sunday. Isaac was curious about how Dr. Derek looked outside of his hospital uniform. He always had on his blue pants and shirt that were the same color as Isaac’s toothpaste. His dad said they were called ‘scrubs’. 

Actually one time, Isaac saw Dr. Derek at the grocery store and he was wearing a T-shirt and some running shorts. Isaac remembered his dad muttering something about it was ‘unfair for people to be that hot all the time.’ But that didn’t make any sense, because the grocery store was air-conditioned. And they saw Dr. Derek in the freezer aisle. 

So he wasn’t hot then. 

Sometimes Isaac’s dad didn’t make a lot of sense. 

***

Snack time was Isaac’s favorite time of the day. 

“Hi Isaac.” 

“Hi Danny.” 

“Hi Isaac.” 

“Go away Dennis,” Danny glared. 

***

Isaac went over to Danny’s house on Saturday. He liked Danny’s house. It had stairs on the inside. Sometimes Isaac and Danny would take Danny’s mom’s yoga mats and go surfing down the stairs. 

“What do you want to do today?” Danny asked. 

“I don’t know,” Isaac answered. “Do you have any new Wii games?” 

“I got the new MarioKart last weekend. Do you wanna play that?” 

“Yeah!”

“Hi Isaac,” Danny’s mom said as she walked into the playroom. “How are you?”

“I’m good, Ms. Lydia,” Isaac answered. “How are you?”

“Fine, thank you. Do you boys want some juice or snacks?” 

“Mom, can you make bagel bites and orange juice?” 

“Pepperoni or Four cheese?” 

“Both!” 

***

It was Saturday night. 

Dr. Derek would be here tomorrow. 

As in Dr. Derek would be in Isaac’s house tomorrow. 

In Isaac’s living room. 

In Isaac’s kitchen. 

In Isaac’s bathroom. 

In Isaac’s house. 

Isaac was bouncing off the walls with anticipation. 

His dad seemed nervous for some reason. Isaac didn’t know why. It wasn’t like the president was coming over for dinner the next night. It was just Dr. Derek. There was nothing to worry about. 

“Are you ok dad?” Isaac asked. 

I mean really, his dad had been fidgeting all day, and he only did that when he was nervous. Isaac had figured out that his dad liked Dr. Derek more than friends, but if he kept acting like this, then he was going to scare Dr. Derek away. 

“Yeah I’m fine buddy. I just don’t know what to make Dr. Derek for dinner.” 

Isaac crinkled his nose in thought. “Meatloaf and green beans? And mashed potatoes?”

“That sounds good,” his dad smiled. He reached down to pat Isaac on the head. “You’re the best buddy.” 

Isaac beamed. 

What would his dad do without him? 

***

Sunday afternoon, Isaac helped his dad mash the potatoes. 

And he rinsed the green beans too. 

He liked helping his dad in the kitchen. His dad even bought him a chef hat too. He said that Isaac was his little ‘sous chef.’ 

Whatever that was. 

***

“Dr. Derek!” Isaac called as he tackled Derek’s legs. He pressed his face into Dr. Derek’s inner thigh. “You smell good.” 

“Thanks pup,” Dr. Derek smiled. “I’d give you a hug, but I don’t want to drop the cake.” 

“What kind of cake is it?” Isaac asked as he let go of Dr. Derek’s legs. 

“Red Velvet. It’s homemade. I hope that’s ok.” 

Isaac almost passed out from excitement.” 

***

Isaac wasn’t dumb. He saw the way that his dad and Dr. Derek were looking at each other. There were gentle touches here, cute little smiles there. They were literally flirting like little boys, and Isaac could say that confidently. 

He was a little boy himself. 

“Dr. Derek do you want to see my planet drawing?” Isaac interrupted. His dad wasn’t allowed to hog Dr. Derek all night. It had been Isaac’s idea to invite Dr. Derek over in the first place. Well actually it had been Danny’s, but Isaac was Danny’s boyfriend, and they shared everything. 

So it was Isaac’s idea to invite Dr. Derek over for dinner. 

Maybe if his dad and Dr. Derek got their stuff straightened out, then they could be boyfriends too, but not now. 

Isaac had to show Dr. Derek his planet drawing. 

“That’s really cool Isaac,” Dr. Derek said. “Do you think you can quiz me? I’m a doctor, so I don’t know that much about planets.” 

“Ok sure,” Isaac beamed. “What’s that planet?” he asked, pointing to his drawing. 

“Saturn.” 

“Ummmm…. What’s that planet?” 

“Venus.” 

“What about that one?”

“Neptune.” 

“You already know them all!” Isaac grinned. “You cheated!!”

“How could I cheat if I already knew them pup?” Dr. Derek smiled. 

Ok, Isaac could give him that. 

But Dr. Derek probably thought that Pluto wasn’t a planet, so Isaac could hold that over his head. 

***  
“I want to sit next to Dr. Derek!” Isaac called as his dad started setting the table. “Please!!” 

“I don’t see why not,” his dad grinned. He winked at Dr. Derek. 

Isaac frowned. Dr. Derek and his dad weren’t allowed to have little inside jokes. Dr. Derek liked Isaac best. 

“Come on pup,” Dr. Derek smiled as be picked Isaac up. “Let’s go sit down at the table. I’d love to sit next to you.”

Isaac almost stuck his tongue out at his dad. But he wanted cake, so he held is tongue in check. But he knew that Dr. Derek liked him better. Isaac smiled to himself; it was ok though. He would totally share Dr. Derek with his dad. 

Probably. 

***

Isaac thinks he ate too much cake.

But it was really good. 

Dr. Derek should be a baker. 

***

“I’m not tired,” Isaac mumbled sleepily. But it was a lie and he knew it. He was trying so hard to stay up and finish the Lion King; he really wanted to see Simba beat Scar. But he was so tired, and Dr. Derek was really comfortable. 

“I know pup,” Dr. Derek whispered into his ear. “It’s fine.” 

“Isaac you know you don’t have school tomorrow right?” his dad asked. 

“Yeah, I’m not tired though.” Isaac snoozed. 

“You were snoring a couple minutes ago buddy.”

“Was not.” 

“Was too.” 

“You were snoring pup,” Dr. Derek chuckled. “But it’s getting late.” 

Isaac hummed and nuzzled back into Dr. Derek’s chest. 

“Dad, what if I fall asleep and I can’t tell you I love you?” Isaac frowned, he saw his dad chuckle, and realized he had probably dozed off again. Whatever. He always told his dad he loved him before bed. His dad would tuck him in, kiss him on the forehead, and Isaac would tell him he loved him. Every night without fail.

“You could tell me right now,” his dad smiled. 

“I love you dad,” Isaac said sleepily. 

“I love you too Isaac,” his dad answered. 

“Don’t worry Dr. Derek, I love you too,” Isaac mumbled. 

“I love you too pup.” 

***

Isaac was dreaming. 

It was a nice dream too. 

He was playing in a big field with his dad, and there was a big black wolf playing with them. He looked like Balto, but way cooler. The wolf was big and strong and it kept licking Isaac’s face. Isaac was very happy, and his dad had a huge smile on his face. 

Isaac smiled in his sleep. 

When he woke up the next morning, he wished that the wolf was real.


	9. Derek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finals week, so I probably won't be able to update until late next week. 
> 
> I LOVE YOU ALL!!

His mate invited him over for dinner! 

Thank God tonight was a full moon, because Derek _really_ needed to let his wolf out. After Stiles waved goodbye and Isaac detached himself from Derek’s leg, Derek took the rest of the day off. 

Dr. Graham was pretty upset, because he had scheduled a pediatrics meeting that evening. And Mrs. Hansen was upset because Derek rescheduled Agnes’ appointment for next week.

Derek didn’t care.

He had no fucks left to give. 

He also took Monday off for personal reasons.

Just in case.

***

As soon night fell, Derek tore off all his clothes and took off into the woods behind his house. He didn’t even bother eating dinner or anything. He could probably catch a rabbit or a deer or something. Derek just needed to let his wolf run loose. He planned on running all night, he was that happy that Stiles had invited him to dinner. He didn’t care what happened for the rest of the week.

If Mrs. Hansen wanted to him to see Agnes every day for the rest of the year, Derek wouldn’t care. He was having dinner with Stiles and Isaac. 

If Dr. Graham scheduled 6 am pediatrics meetings for the entire month, Derek wouldn’t care. He was having dinner with Stiles and Isaac.

 _He was having dinner with Stiles and Isaac._  

Nothing could ruin Derek’s mood. 

***

Derek had been running for a long time. He was waiting for the euphoric feeling that Stiles had _actually_ invited him over for dinner to wear off, but it wasn’t. It was a little weird. 

The full moon was making him a little extra bold, so he decided to run to Stiles’ apartment. He knew where the complex was because Stiles’ and Isaac’s scents were concentrated there, and he might have taken a peek at Isaac’s hospital records. And there was a possibility that he had driven by it a couple of times when he was having a bad day.

Stiles’ and Isaac’s scents comforted him, even if they weren’t right under his nose.

But he had never physically been there. 

And he had never been there on a full moon.

Derek ran through the back part of the woods and hid in the trees behind Stiles’ apartment complex. He glanced at his watch; it was getting late, 8:45. Stiles would probably be getting Isaac ready for bed. Derek sniffed the air, and tried to distinguish Stiles’ and Isaac’s scents apart from the rest of the people in the complex.

It was surprisingly easy to find them. They were in an apartment on the second story on the far side of the complex. As Derek made his way over, their scents got stronger. And as their scents got stronger, Derek got happier. 

Derek remained hidden in the trees as he stopped. He listened in on Stiles’ and Isaac’s apartment, focusing on their heartbeats. Derek frowned slightly when he heard that Isaac’s heartbeat was normal, but he pushed the thoughts from his head. Isaac was fine. And everything was working out ok.

It sounded like there was a kid’s movie on. Derek heard the name ‘Balto’ a lot, so he assumed that’s what it was. He never really liked that movie to be honest. Balto wasn’t even a werewolf. He was a dog that ran on some snow. Derek could run on snow. Why didn’t he get his own movie? 

Deciding that he wanted to get a better look, Derek quickly climbed up one of the trees, and nestled himself in one of the branches so that he was level with Stiles’ window. 

Stiles and Isaac were cuddled on the floor, wrapped in blankets and pillows. It looked like Isaac was already asleep, and Stiles seemed to be dozing off himself. There was a bowl of popcorn on the floor, and it was Balto that was playing on the TV. Derek wanted nothing more than to simply walk into the apartment, wrap himself around Stiles, nuzzle Isaac’s head and be with them.

He let out a soft howl of longing, and ran back home. 

 _Soon._  His wolf whispered. _Soon._  

*** 

Derek was having a problem; he couldn’t bake to save his life. And there was no way in hell that Stiles would allow a store-bought cake into his house.

That’s why he was spending his Saturday trying to make sense of the red velvet cake recipe that he pulled off the Internet. Red velvet happened to be Derek’s favorite kind of cake. He just hoped that Stiles and Isaac liked red velvet cake as much as he did.

Because this recipe served 16.

Derek didn’t realize that until he cracked his 6th egg into the bowl.

Paula Deen, don’t fail me now, Derek prayed.

*** 

He had never been more nervous in his entire life.

It was 6:35 Sunday evening and he was sitting in his car outside of Stiles’ apartment. The cake, which turned out beautifully _(Thank you Paula Deen)_ , was sitting in the passenger seat, and Derek was dressed in a button down shirt and some black slacks.

He didn’t know why he was so nervous. 

It was _Stiles and Isaac._

He _knew_ them.

He _cared_ about them.

Stiles was his _mate._

And Isaac looked at Derek like he _hung the frickin’ moon._

He had no reason to be nervous, he kept telling himself. It was just dinner. Stiles had invited him over and everything was going to be fine. But he couldn’t shake the feeling that something was going to go wrong. He was going to say something, and Stiles would never want to talk to him again. He would change Isaac’s pediatrician and Derek would never see either of them again.

Ok, maybe he was being a little dramatic, but he was still nervous. 

Derek sighed and looked at the clock. 6:47.

He took a deep breath and opened the car door. 

He was going to make this work.

*** 

“I brought Red velvet cake,” Derek smiled shyly as he walked into the kitchen. Isaac had run off too his room to show Derek some of his school projects, leaving Derek alone in the kitchen with Stiles. “It’s homemade, and it’s Paula Deen’s recipe. I figured you would want something homemade instead of store bought.”

_Christ, why was he so awkward?_

Stiles’ eyebrows rose as he took the cake from Derek’s hands. “Dude, Paula Deen? You know she has diabetes right? She puts so much butter and shortening in her food that it’s a wonder her arteries aren’t solid. Are you trying to kill me and Isaac with unhealthy foods? God, it would have been better if you had just bought something from Safeway. But I guess we’ll make due with what we have.” Stiles turned the cake around in his hands, inspecting it, and he crinkled his nose in distaste.

Derek had never felt worse in his life. 

“I… I’m sorry,” Derek stuttered. “I didn’t know, I just…. I wanted… I thought you would…. Sorry.”

Stiles grinned wickedly as he placed the cake on the counter. “You should see your face right now. It’s so adorable.”

“Wait, what?”

“I’m kidding Derek,” Stiles smirked, eyes gleaming. “It looks delicious, and anything homemade is better than Safeway brand. Thank you. But did you have to make such a big cake? It’s only the three of us, and Isaac hasn’t exactly developed a teenage appetite yet. He’s 5.” 

“I didn’t look at the yield until I cracked the 6th egg,” Derek admitted sheepishly. “I don’t usually bake. I’m really good at grilling though.” 

“So you baked a cake just for us?” Stiles said, eyebrows rising again.

“Yeah,” Derek blushed. “I did.”

“You’re adorable,” Stiles smiled as he leaned over and kissed Derek on the cheek. “Wait,” he stopped as he stepped back. “Are you blushing?”

Derek didn’t say anything and he kept blushing.

Stiles had just kissed him on the cheek. 

Of course Derek would be blushing. 

*** 

Isaac must have hidden his school project away in Narnia or something, because he had been gone for a very long time.

Derek was still willing the blush to fade from his cheeks, while Stiles put the finishing touches on dinner. As Stiles was busily roaming around the kitchen, Derek took a couple of moments to himself to just take Stiles in. 

His mate was wearing a powder blue button up, jeans and socks. It looked just out of his comfort zone, like he was going above and beyond to impress Derek and try to get on his good side. Little did Stiles know, he was already on Derek’s good side. Permanently. Being Derek’s mate had his perks. 

As Derek watched Stiles pull the mashed potatoes and green beans off the stove, he smiled at how sweet and nice Stiles smelled. There was a twinge of nervousness, but for the most part, Stiles’ scent was very pleasant to Derek’s wolf. Every little thing about Stiles that made him who he was, comforted Derek. Being in his mate’s house, with his mate so close was everything Derek needed right now. 

He was happy. 

***

Dinner was nice.

Derek and Isaac were sitting on one side of the table, and Stiles was sitting on the other. Apparently they ate family style in the Stilinski household, so all the food was already sitting on the table. It was a little change for Derek, usually he just stuck a Hot Pocket in the microwave and drank a beer as he sat on his couch. 

So having a homemade meal was nice, and he could get used to the way Stiles cooked.

It was Derek’s first time in Stiles’ apartment, even though he had secretly been outside the window a couple days ago , but it felt like he loved there. It smelled heavily of Stiles and Isaac and their combined scents were very comforting to Derek. 

 _Home,_ his wolf growled softly. 

Stiles made meatloaf, mashed potatoes and green beans for dinner. Generally, Derek wasn’t usually a fan of meatloaf. He found it plain and boring. But whatever Stiles did to his meatloaf, was making Derek seriously reconsider his preconceived notions about foods he didn’t like. 

Maybe Stiles could make Brussels sprouts taste good.

No, Stiles was good. But he probably wasn’t that good.

Brussels sprouts were disgusting.

***

Isaac was rambling a mile a minute about Danny and all the things they were learning about in school. Clearly he took after his dad. Instead of trying to pay attention to the words that were coming out of Isaac’s mouth, Derek found himself trying to determine when Isaac took a breath.                                                                                   

Stiles was rolling his eyes fondly while Isaac talked and talked and talked. Derek relaxed as looked around at his mate and his mate’s pup. He was enjoying their company, and he hoped that eventually he could be a permanent part in their family.

Derek felt Stiles nudge his foot at under the table; he looked up to see Stiles wink discreetly at him. Derek smiled back, earning him a blush from Stiles. Derek actually enjoyed seeing this side of Stiles, relaxed and carefree. 

It was nice. 

***

The cake was delicious.

Paula Deen knew exactly what she was doing.

*** 

Even though the next day was Monday, Isaac didn’t have school. There was some sort of furlough day for the teachers. Stiles was going to put Isaac to bed, but Isaac pouted just enough for Stiles to let him stay up past bedtime. 

Derek chuckled as he watched Stiles and Isaac banter back and forth. Isaac’s pout was lethal. It was one of the most heart wrenching pouts he had ever seen. And that was saying something; there was an intern at the hospital, Scott, who had a puppy dog pout that would turn Hitler into a good guy.

“You don’t have to stay if you don’t want to,” Stiles muttered. “You probably have to work early tomorrow.”   

“I took tomorrow off,” Derek said as he placed his hands tentatively at Stiles’ waist. “I can stay if you want me too.” 

“Yeah, I’d… we’d like that,” Stiles replied, licking his lips nervously. It shouldn’t have been that attractive, but it was. “I could put in a movie if you want.” 

“That’s fine,” Derek said softly. “I just want to spend time with you guys.”

“Can we watch The Lion King?” Isaac spoke up. 

“Of course bud,” Stiles smiled.

*** 

Stiles’ carpet was comfortable.

Like really comfortable. 

Probably the most comfortable thing on the planet.

Actually wait, maybe that was Isaac snuggling against his chest. He was pretty comfortable too.

The three of them were sprawled out in front of Stiles’ TV, wrapped in blankets and watching The Lion King. Derek had never been more content in his life. Isaac was sitting on his lap, and Stiles was sitting very close next to him. Every now and Isaac would yelp during the movie and bury his face in Derek’s neck.

Stiles was loosely holding Derek’s hand underneath the blankets, and Derek would be lying if he said he wasn’t relishing his mates touch. 

Isaac fell asleep about halfway through the movie, around the part where Simba reconnects with Nala. Isaac’s small arms were wrapped around Derek’s neck and he was snoring softly into Derek’s chest.

Derek pressed a small kiss to the top of the sleeping boys head and turned to Stiles. 

“I can put him to bed if you want,” he whispered. 

“No, I can do it later,” Stiles whispered back. “He’s a pretty heavy sleeper.” 

Derek chuckled as Isaac mumbled something in his sleep.

“Thanks for inviting me to dinner.” Derek squeezed his mate’s hand a little bit tighter.

“Thanks for coming,” Stiles smiled. “We’ll have to do this again sometime.” 

“Count on it.” 

***

As Derek was driving home, he couldn’t keep the smile off his face.

His mate was his boyfriend. They were getting there. 

*** 

He howled happily when he got home.  


	10. Stiles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So glad to be done with school. 
> 
> These three are probably going to be the longest chapters of the fic. There's a lot going on in this update. 
> 
> Also, I'm not quite happy with this chapter in relation to the other two. I guess it gets the job done but still.....

Stiles woke up Monday morning in a daze. Did last night really happen? Did he really just have a date with Derek Hale? Was Derek Hale really his boyfriend? Stiles stretched and rolled out of bed. He walked into his bathroom and splashed water on his face. As he looked in the mirror, he noticed a post it note stuck to the top left corner.

_-I had fun last night. Thanks._

_-Derek_

Stiles chuckled and grinned to himself. Oh fuck yeah. Last night wasn’t a dream. Stiles officially had a boyfriend. And his name was Derek Hale. This called for celebration. 

*** 

Stiles was in the middle of making waffles for himself and Isaac when the doorbell rang. 

“I’ll get it!” Isaac called from the living room.

Before Stiles could stop him, Isaac was already bounding towards the door. Stiles sighed and wiped waffle batter off his hands and walked to see who was at the door. He would never understand how Isaac could have boatloads of morning energy on the weekends and days off, but he was a total slug on school mornings.

“Dr. Derek!” Isaac smiled. “What are you doing here? You were here last night! Are you staying for waffles too? My dad makes the best waffles. They have chocolate chips in them.”

“Hey pup,” Derek smiled, picking Isaac up and tossing him into the air. “I just happened to be in the neighborhood,” he smiled, winking at Stiles. “I would love to stay for waffles if it’s ok with your dad.”

Stiles fought hard not to roll his eyes. _‘If it’s ok with your dad.’_  Yeah right. Derek knew what he did to Stiles. The man was sex on legs and he knew it too. He could do just about anything and Stiles would be perfectly ok with it.

“No problems here,” Stiles grinned. “But if you’re eating my world famous waffles, you’re gonna have to contribute something to the greater good.”

“How about this,” Derek smirked. He adjusted Isaac on his hip, walked over and pressed a gentle kiss to Stiles’ lips. “And I have orange juice in a cooler in my car. Plus I’ll do the dishes.”

“Million dollar question,” Stiles frowned.

“Shoot.” 

“Pulp or pulp-free?”

“Pulp.”

“Ok you’re in,” Stiles grinned, kissing Derek back. 

“Ewwwww,” Isaac giggled. “Dr. Derek and Daddy sitting in a tree. K-I-S-S-I-N-G.”

“You got that right pup,” Derek smiled wolfishly. “You get some too.”

Isaac shrieked and laughed as Derek pressed wet and sloppy kisses to his cheek.

“Ok, ok,” Isaac gasped, face still red from laughing. “No more!” 

“Still like me?” Dr. Derek asked as he nuzzled Isaac’s neck.”

“No,” Isaac grinned.  “I like daddy.” 

“Yeah,” Derek smiled, looking at Stiles. “I like your daddy too.” 

Stiles turned back to the waffle batter to keep from blushing. But he was pretty sure that Derek saw it.

***

Derek ate a LOT of waffles. And he ate them really weird too, he ate them with peanut butter instead of syrup. Apparently it was healthier. Not that Stiles was complaining about Derek’s physique, but syrup and waffles went together like the colors of the rainbow. They were just meant to be together. But true to his word, he did bring up a gallon of pulp filled orange juice, and he did all the dishes.

But there had to be some sort of law against any one man being able to eat that many waffles. 

***

Thanks to Isaac’s 5-year-old blabbermouth, it was only a matter of time before the entire town of Beacon Hills knew that Stiles Stilinski was dating Derek Hale. Ordinarily Stiles would’ve been a little more upset that his son was spreading his business around, but Stiles felt pretty good about himself that he was able to snag a hunk like Derek Hale. 

The angry women of the PTA could suck it.

When Stiles came into work Wednesday morning, Erica cornered him. 

“Spill Stilinski,” she hissed as she pushed him into his chair. “I want to know all about you and Dr. Derek.”

“I… We’ve been dating for four days Erica!” Stiles flustered. “There’s nothing to say! How did you even find out about this anyway? It’s literally been 4 days since we started dating! He came over Sunday evening, asked me out Sunday night, and we've been dating since then. How did you find out so fast?”

“Oh please,” Erica replied flippantly. “Isaac told his little boyfriend Danny, who told his parents. Jackson and Boyd are friends, so Jackson told Boyd, who told me. And now I’m asking you again. Spill the beans.”

“I mean there’s not much to spill,” Stiles frowned. “It’s been 4 days. He came over for dinner on Sunday, came over Monday morning on Isaac’s and his day off, and he said that he wanted to take me out on a real date soon. That’s it. I promise.” 

“Stiles and Derek sitting in a tree, F-U-C-K-I-N-G.” 

“Erica!” Stiles blushed. “This is the library!” 

“Thanks commander obvious,” Erica groaned, rolling her eyes. “I know this. I happen to work here too you know.” 

“So you can’t say things like that!” 

“Stiles half of the people here are on some sort hearing aids. They probably don’t even know what day it is.”

“Fine,” Stiles sighed. “But we’re still not having sex. I don’t want to rush into anything with him. I mean yeah he’s hot, and he’s great with Isaac, but it wouldn’t be the first time I jumped feet first into a relationship. And look where that got me.”

“Oh right, Jenny,” Erica said quietly. “I forgot about her. I’m sorry.”

“Don’t be. She gave me the best thing in my life,” Stiles whispered. “Isaac is everything to me. And if Derek really wants to be part of my life, part of our lives, then he’s going to have to earn it. Because I’m not letting another pretty face hurt me or Isaac ever again.”

“You’re strong Stiles,” Erica said gently, squeezing him on the shoulder. “If he hurts you, I’m going to kill him. You know that right?” 

“It’s why you’re my best friend,” Stiles grinned. “But seriously. Enough with the sad talk. Derek’s a great guy, and he wouldn’t hurt Isaac or me. We’ll probably be married within the next year. You can be the flower girl.”

“You want to marry him?” 

“I wouldn’t be opposed.” Stiles grinned. 

***

On Thursday, Stiles took Isaac to his check up. Honestly, Stiles didn’t know why they even went anymore. Even before Stiles and Derek started dating, Isaac’s check ups had started to become more about Stiles and Derek flirting and less about Isaac’s heart. After every check up, Derek would tell Stiles that Isaac’s heart was fine, and then they would end up talking for 30 minutes. It was like the check-ups had been excuses for Derek and Stiles to talk to each other. 

Well now that they were dating, did they really need check ups? Derek was a doctor and he could check Isaac on his own time right? Stiles didn’t need to keep having to pay extra money for something that Derek could do for free.

Stiles frowned and pushed the thoughts from his head. 

Yeah, his library salary was small, and yeah he sometimes had to ask his dad for extra cash when the rent was due, but Stiles would never jeopardize his son’s health. Never in a million years. If Stiles’ had to work extra hours or pick up another job, then he would do it in a heart beat (no pun intended.)  

Stiles looked back at Isaac who had been humming the _Rollie Pollie Olie_ theme song since Sunday morning, and smiled to himself. 

“Hey, Isaac.”

“Yeah dad?” 

“I love you.” 

“I love you too dad,” Isaac beamed. “I love you the best.”

*** 

In the weeks that followed, Derek and Stiles started spending a lot of their time together. With every passing moment, Stiles felt more and more secure that Derek just might be the one. He was smoking hot, so that was a plus, but even beyond his smoking exterior was a huge heart.

Stiles learned that Derek was a secret romantic. He would send Stiles cute texts while he was at work. He came over to Stiles’ apartment a lot and helped out when Stiles was feeling particularly drained from stress and work. If Stiles was feeling particularly stressed, Derek would sit them both down on the couch and massage the tension out of Stiles’ shoulders until Stiles was calm enough to resume doing whatever it was he was doing.

It turned out that he wasn’t lying when he said that he was good at grilling. One night he came over and grilled some delicious steaks on the stovetop. They were great, even Isaac thought so. And Isaac usually didn’t eat meat unless it was chicken.

But Derek’s best quality, in Stiles’ opinion, was how great he was with Isaac. Stiles had never seen Isaac give himself so whole-heartedly to another person, excluding Danny. But Derek seemed to bring out the best in Isaac, and vice versa. Stiles would watch them as they were playing, Derek had a genuine smile on his face, and Isaac’s eyes were full of glee. Isaac would pout on the days that Derek had to work late and couldn’t come over for dinner, and it almost seemed that Isaac liked that Derek slept over sometimes as much as Stiles did.

Stiles couldn’t believe his luck. He had a boyfriend who he was very close to falling in love with, who was good with his son, and was hot as fuck. 

He didn’t see how things could get any better.

*** 

Stiles watched Isaac mope into his room. 

Then Derek came over.

Stiles watched Derek go into Isaac’s room.

He heard laughter and giggling. 

Stiles watched Isaac come smiling out of his room, looking much happier than he had when he went in. 

Derek’s wink told him everything he needed to know.

His boyfriend was perfect. 

*** 

“Dad can I spend Friday night at Danny’s house?” Isaac asked. “Ms. Allison gave us a project to do, and we’re partners.” 

“What’s the project about bud?”

“We have to pick an animal and do a report on it. We’re going to do wolves because they are big and strong.” 

“Sounds good Isaac, did Danny ask his parents?”

“He will when they pick him up from school. He said he would ask his mom to text you.” 

“Alright pup,” Stiles said, “That sounds good to me. We can pack your bag when we get home.” 

“Dad.” 

“What’s up buddy?” 

“You can’t call me pup,” Isaac grinned. “That’s what Dr. Derek calls me. You call me buddy and Isaac.”

“What if I want to call you pup?” Stiles fake pouted, ruffling his son’s hair. “Dr. Derek has called you bud before.” 

“Fine,” Isaac grinned. “But I’m telling Dr. Derek.” 

***

When Stiles and Isaac got home, there was a text from Lydia on his phone. 

 **From Lydia Whittemore-Martin (4:15):** _I’ll pick up Isaac on Fri. He doesn’t need an overnight bag. J and I will take care of him. Enjoy your Friday night with your boyfriend. :)_

Stiles snorted and rolled his eyes. All the women in his life wanted him to get laid. It was a little weird, both Lydia and Erica had smoking hot significant others. Stiles was man enough to admit that. Jackson had model good looks and everyone thought that Boyd had that sexy strong and silent vibe about him.

 **To Lydia Whittemore-Martin (4:37):** _Thanks Lyds. I owe you. I’ll take Danny off your hands for a weekend sometime down the road. And lay off me and Derek. We’re taking it slow._

Stiles was about to close his phone, when he realized that he had a free night with Derek on Friday. There was no chance that he was going to pass that one up.

 **To Derek Hale (4:38):** _Hey, what are you doing Friday night?_

 **From Derek Hale (4:41):** _Well I planned on spending time with my boyfriend… Have you met him? He’s this really great guy with a sweet smile and a sweeter heart. He also has a son who’s probably the happiest 5 year-old in Beacon Hills._

Under no circumstances did Stiles blush. Derek was not that romantic. He wasn’t. 

Ok, Stiles totally blushed. Derek was totally that romantic. 

And Stiles loved every second of it. 

 **To Derek Hale (4:42):** _Ha. Ha. You’re so funny._

 **From Derek Hale (4:44):** _:) What’s up Stiles? I’m not doing anything on Friday._

**To Derek Hale (4:47):** _Isaac is spending the night at Danny’s house. They have a school project to do, so I was wondering if maybe you wanted to go get dinner and a movie._

**From Derek Hale (4:48):** _I’m not watching Great Gatsby. I don’t like diCaprio._

**To Derek Hale (4:51):** _Lol._

**From Derek Hale (4:52):** _I’ll be at your place at 7:00. :)_

**To Derek Hale (4:54):** _Can’t wait!_

**From Lydia Whittemore-Martin (4:54):** _Whatever you say Stiles. Have fun on Friday. :)_

**From Derek Hale (5:00):** _It’s a date. :)_

*** 

Stiles probably should get his chronic nervousness checked. Counting their first date when Derek came over for dinner that one Sunday night, Stiles had been on at least 7 dates with Derek.

Of course Isaac had been the awkward ‘third wheel but not really’ on 3 of those dates, but they were still dates nonetheless.

His personal favorite was their fourth date, about two months into their official relationship. They had taken Isaac over to Danny’s house and were enjoying a nice dinner at Red Lobster. 

Oddly, Derek wasn’t really a fan of seafood _(“You really ordered a steak at Red Lobster? It’s not called Red Cow.”),_ but Stiles was a sucker for those cheddar garlic biscuits.  _(“Stiles maybe you should slow down on the biscuits. You’ve eaten 12 and our waitress hasn’t even asked us what we wanted to drink.”)_  

They had been sitting at their table, waiting for their food to arrive, when Stiles asked about Derek’s family.

“They died in a train accident,” Derek frowned. “I had just gotten my dual-doctorate and they were taking the train to come see me walk. I’m not sure what happened, but somehow the train de-railed and everyone on it died.”

“Oh,” Stiles whispered. “I’m so sorry. Derek, I’m so sorry, I didn’t know… I’m sorry I… That must be a sensitive subject. I didn’t mean to pry.”

“It’s ok,” Derek smiled sadly. “There’s nothing that can be done now. Their graves are out in the forest behind the Beacon Hills Cemetery, I go talk to them sometimes. It’s not the same as if they were there, but it’s comforting ya know?” 

Stiles heart broke as he looked into Derek’s eyes. Although his boyfriend was smiling, his eyes betrayed the heartache and sadness that he harbored in his heart.

“My mom died of cancer when I was little,” Stiles answered softly. “I grew up with just me and my dad. It wasn’t so bad. We leaned on each other for support. I graduated high school and moved in with my girlfriend of six months. My dad wasn’t happy, but I told him that I was 18 and I could legally do what I wanted to.” 

“That girlfriend,” Derek started slowly. “Was she?” 

“Isaac’s mom?” Stiles finished. “Yeah she was. I got her pregnant almost as soon as we moved into the house. I don’t even think everything had been moved in, I just remember she wanted to break in the bed as soon as possible.” 

Stiles took a breath to compose himself. When he saw that Derek had extended his hand across the table, he smiled softly and squeezed it slightly. 

“When Isaac was born, that was honestly the happiest day of my life,” Stiles continued. “He was the most adorable baby on the planet. He smiled at me as soon as he saw me. But then Jenny said it was either Isaac or her. And when I didn’t choose her right away, she said it was over and she left. She checked herself out of the hospital less than 2 hours after giving birth. I haven’t seen her since.” 

“Stiles, I’m so sorry,” Derek whispered, squeezing Stiles’ hand a little tighter.

“Don’t be,” Stiles smiled. “She gave me the best thing that’s ever happened to me. And I know this sounds selfish, but I don’t think I would want her back in his life, even if she wanted to come back in. I mean sometimes it’s hard, ya know, being a single dad and stuff. Sometimes it’s hard to make ends meet on a librarians salary and child support, but I do the best I can. My dad helps out as much as he can, but he’s the sheriff so he’s busy all the time. So sometimes it’s hard, absolutely. But Isaac’s smile makes everything worth it. I know all parents say this, but I would kill for him. I love him so much. That’s why when you told me that he had a heart murmur I was so scared. I thought that I was going to lose him forever. But he’s a fighter; he’s so strong. He’s my inspiration for everything." 

“That’s beautiful Stiles,” Derek smiled softly. “Isaac is lucky to have a dad like you.”

“I think I’m the lucky one,” Stiles whispered. “Jesus,” he laughed softly. “I’m crying. That’s probably really cute looking.” 

“It’s fine,” Derek smiled. “You’re ok,” he whispered. Then he frowned slightly.  “

"I don't.. I don't really know how to say this without sounding like a complete and total douchebag, but I have 3 life insuracnce policies and a doctor's salary. I have more money than I know what to do with. If you ever need anything, please don't hesitate to ask me. Rent, groceries, you want me to take Isaac to the amusement park, anything. Let me help you."

Stiles laughed softly and shook his head. “Jesus Derek,” he whispered. “Just stop. You’re already everything I need right now. You’re nice, funny and Isaac loves you. I would feel horrible coming to you for money. I’m sorry, but I just can’t do that.” 

“Fine,” Derek nodded slightly. “Just promise me. If you’re ever in trouble, ask me. _Please._ I want to be there for you and Isaac.”

Stiles was silent for a few moments. He literally had the perfect boyfriend. 

“You’re kind of perfect, you know that?”

“Stiles…”

“Ok,” Stiles nodded. “But only in emergencies.”

“That’s all I ask,” Derek smiled softly. He reached out over the table and took both of Stiles’ hands in his own. Stiles couldn’t help but notice how perfectly their hands fit together. 

Like they were a match made in heaven or something.

“Derek.” 

“Hmmm?”

“I think I’m falling in love with you.” 

Derek smiled and kissed Stiles’ knuckles. “Me too, Stiles.”

*** 

Stiles didn’t even fight that hard when Derek insisted he paid that night.

***

So Stiles really had nothing to worry about. He was going on another date with Derek. Most of the mushy stuff was out of the way and every date since that fourth date had been nothing but joy and smiles.

Nerves aside he didn’t know what Derek did to him, but he sure was enjoying every minute of it.

***

“Hey,” Stiles greeted, when Derek rang the doorbell. 

“Hey to you too,” Derek answered, sounding slightly out of breath. He coughed and kissed Stiles gently. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah,” Stiles replied breathlessly. Even after three months kissing Derek still took his breath away and left him on Cloud 9. He also started blushing, and from the gleam in Derek’s eyes, he clearly enjoyed it. “You driving or me?”

“Me,” Derek grinned wolfishly. The moon apparently was playing tricks on him, because Stiles swore that Derek’s eyes changed color. Derek pulled Stiles in for another kiss, a lot more passionate and rougher than the last one. 

“Ok,” Stiles smiled and blushed again. “I’m pretty sure I like the direction this date is heading.”

Derek grinned again and pulled Stiles towards his Camaro.

 _“The moon sure is pretty tonight,”_ Stiles thought to himself as he buckled his seatbelt.

*** 

“So I had fun tonight,” Stiles smiled as Derek dropped him off. They were standing inside Stiles’ apartment, Stiles back against the wall and Derek nosing gently at his neck. Stiles tilted his head back to allow Derek access to his entire neck and started threading his fingers his hair. “Jesus, what has gotten into you? You haven’t left my neck alone all night. You didn’t even watch the movie, and I  Isaac’s probably going to ask why it looks like someone punched it, you should probably be careful.” 

“Not doing anything wrong,” Derek murmured, running his stubble across Stiles’ neck.

“You’re gonna…. You’re gonna give me razor burn,” Stiles shuddered. 

“Get used to it,” Derek breathed, nipping at Stiles’ collarbone. He nuzzled Stiles’ neck for a couple more minutes, before pulling back to admire his handiwork.

“Congratulations,” Stiles smirked. “That’s going to stay for at least a week.”

“Good,” Derek grinned. “That way I can freshen you up on our date next week.” 

Stiles responded by pulling Derek into a heated kiss. “I love you,” he whispered into Derek’s nose when they broke apart. 

“I love you too,” Derek whispered back. In a weird trick of the light, it looked like Derek’s eyes flashed a different color, the same way that they had done earlier that night. But he blinked back and they were normal. Stiles pushed it from his mind. He was tired and his mind was playing tricks on him. He probably was losing blood because all of it was rushing to form giant hickeys on his neck. 

“I’ll see you soon,” Derek smiled, kissing Stiles on the forehead. “Bye.”

“Bye,” Stiles said, as Derek walked out the door.

Stiles slept great that night.

***

After their date, Stiles really started to reflect on how his relationship with Derek was progressing. They had been dating for about 4 months, but Stiles already felt like he knew everything there was to know about Derek. He was sweet, kind, funny, helpful and considerate. He was all the things that Stiles looked for in a boyfriend, and then some. Of course they hadn't moved in together, so he could have annoying habits like leaving the toilet seat up, or forgetting to put the twisty back on the bread, but 

Sometimes when Derek slept over, Stiles would stroke his hair and tell him all the things he loved about him. Most of them had to do with how great he was with Isaac, but Stiles knew how well Derek complemented him too. Derek never once judged Stiles on his past or his current profession. Stiles hadn't exactly dated a lot after Jenny but when he had, he faced a lot of rejection when his dates found out that he was a single father or that he worked at the library. One woman had actually thrown a drink in his face and asked if he was seriously trying to date her when he had a kid at home.

Derek never did that once. In fact he seemed to embrace the fact that Stiles had a son. He always whispered how great of a father Stiles was, and how nice Isaac turned out, which was a reflection of Stiles good parenting. 

Sometimes when Derek slept over, Stiles would shake his head silently. Derek looked so peaceful when he slept and Stiles couldn't believe that he was so lucky that someone as great as Derek chose him. Honestly Stiles felt like he didn't deserve it. Of course he tried to be a good person, and he  _knew_  he was a good father, but Derek seemed to just complete Stiles in every way possible. 

Derek was great at helping Isaac with his homework, and he seemed content to watch Playhouse Disney and Nick Jr. for hours on end with Isaac, when Stiles could only stomach those shows for about an hour at best. He was a great father figure to Isaac too. Stiles had always been wary about Isaac growing up with two fathers, he didn't want his bisexuality causing his son problems growing up, but Stiles knew that if it ever came down to it, Derek would be right there when Isaac needed him. 

He was just the perfect boyfriend and Stiles really was lucky to have him. 

Stiles was in love with Derek. 

He was head over heels. 

And he had no intention of getting back up.  

*** 

Isaac, Erica, Lydia and Allison commented on the marks Derek left on Stiles’ neck. 

“Dad, what happened to your neck? Did you get attacked by some grapes?”

“So Dr. Hale has a thing for necks? That’s hot Stiles.”

“Honestly Stiles, you’ve got a biter. Jackson isn’t even that aggressive." 

“Stiles, it’s probably not a good idea for you to show up to the school with hickeys. The children might ask questions, and I’m not paid enough to talk about the birds and the bees to five year olds.”

***

Stiles was working when he got the phone call.

“Stiles, it’s Derek. Meet me at the hospital. There’s been an accident. It’s Isaac. He was hit by a drunk driver. He’s hurt real bad.”

Stiles made the 10 mile drive to the hospital in 3 minutes.

*** 

When the nurse came into the waiting room,” Stiles didn’t even give her a chance to say anything.

“How is he?” he asked, as he shot out of Derek’s embrace. “How is my son?”

“He’s fine,” the nurse smiled sweetly. “He’s actually very lucky. He just took a pretty bad blow to the head and lost consciousness. Nothing’s broken, and everything’s intact. His vitals look good. I’d say spoil him for a couple of days and give him plenty of bed rest and he’ll be back on his feet in no time.” 

“What about his heart?” Stiles asked. “He has a heart murmur.” Derek made a pained cry in the distance, but Stiles ignored it. He probably coughed or something. “How is his heart? Did the trauma of the accident affect his heart in any way?”

The nurse frowned and looked at the charts in her hand. “Ummm, he doesn’t have a heart murmur. His heart is beating perfectly healthy. His blood pressure is 104 over 68, which is really good for a child his age. He can’t have a heart murmur with a blood pressure score that good, it’s highly unlikely that he ever had one. You’ve been misinformed sir.” She nodded slightly and walked away.   

Stiles was pretty sure he thanked her as she walked away, but he wasn’t quite sure. Suddenly everything made so much more sense.

Derek made another sharp gasp, and this time Stiles was pretty sure that he wasn’t coughing.

“What. The. Fuck. Derek,” Stiles gritted out. He was shaking he was so angry. He had never been this angry in his entire life. This was so personal on so many levels. “What the fuck was that? She said he never had a heart murmur, so what the fuck is going on?”

“Stiles… I can explain,” Derek started. 

“No, fuck you Derek.” Stiles retorted. He could feel the tears starting to form in his eyes and he wiped them away angrily. There was no way that he was going to let Derek see him cry. Not after the humiliation that he had put him through. No way was Stiles crying. 

“Fuck you. What the hell is your fucking problem? So Isaac was healthy the whole fucking time? Are you fucking kidding me? The whole time? So you’ve been lying about his heart condition for the past 6 months? For the past 6 months you’ve been lying to me…. To us?”

“Stiles, I…”

“I’m sorry but fuck you Derek,” Stiles didn’t care that the angry tears were falling now. He couldn’t stop them and he didn’t want to stop them. He was so angry and hurt and confused. “So what was this? Some elaborate scheme to get in my pants? Is that what this was all about?”

“No Stiles that’s not…” 

“Don’t even fucking talk to me,” Stiles snapped. “I can’t even believe you Derek. I trusted you! Isaac trusted you! And you strung us along like we were fucking animals. I can’t even right now.” 

Derek stood up and tried to put his hands on Stiles’ shoulders.

Stiles was not having any of that. 

“Don’t fucking touch me,” Stiles said softly. “I SAID DON’T TOUCH ME!’ he screamed when Derek didn’t take the hint. “I trusted you Derek! I fucking trusted you! I trusted you with my feelings and my emotions. But most importantly I trusted you with my family. I thought you were different. I thought you really wanted to be a part of my family. I thought you cared about me. I thought you cared about Isaac.”

“Stiles I do care. I promise… Just let me..”                         

“Save it,” Stiles laughed bitterly. “Don’t try to tell me how much you care. Don’t try to explain anything to me. I honestly can’t take any more lies right now. Clearly this was all an elaborate scheme to get into my pants. And I almost fell for it. It took my son almost dying for me to see that. I guess I am that pathetic.” 

“Stiles you’ve got it all wrong,” Derek pleaded. 

“Oh really,” Stiles gasped. “Ok well let me make sure we’re on the same page. Since you have a problem with lying, allow me to clear some things up for you.”

Derek was starting to tear up at this point too, but Stiles was too angry to care. Stiles did nothing wrong in this whole situation, and now Derek was the one who was starting to cry? 

Bull. Shit. That.

“About 6 months ago you told me that my son had a heart murmur. Correct?” 

Derek nodded.

“But my son never had a heart murmur did he?”

“No,” Derek whispered. 

“Right. However I didn’t know this. So you decided that he should come in for weekly checkups to help with his non-existent heart murmur. Correct?” 

“Yeah.”

“And now I see that these weekly check ups were just a plot to get to know me better. Am I right?”

“Stiles I never wanted to..” Derek’s eyes were red with tears. 

“You didn’t want to what?” Stiles cut in. “You didn’t want to hurt me? Is that it? Here’s a thought. Maybe you shouldn’t have lied to me in the first place. Maybe if you wanted to get to know me, you should’ve just asked me out for coffee. You didn’t have to bring my son into this! And you especially didn’t have to lie to me and tell me that he had a fucking heart murmur!! You knew how much he meant to me!”

“I didn’t know…,” Derek whispered.

“You didn’t know,” Stiles repeated bitterly. “Like that’s an acceptable excuse. Derek you lied to me about the well being of my son. He’s the world to me. Do you know how scared I was? Do you know the strain and stress that your fucking lie put on our relationship? I thought I was going to lose him!” 

“I’m so sorry.”

“I think you need to leave,” Stiles replied, turning away from Derek. “I can’t even look at you right now.”

“But…”

“Just go, Derek. Please just go.” 

*** 

Stiles cried himself to sleep that night. 


	11. Isaac

Isaac awoke to his dad flopping on the bed next to him.

“Good morning Isaac.”

“Hi dad,” Isaac mumbled sleepily. “Its really early.”

“It’s time to get up though,” his dad smiled. “You have the day off but that doesn’t mean you can spend it laying in bed.” 

Isaac groaned into his pillow and snuggled closer to his dad. “I want to sleep forever,” he muttered.

“Yeah,” I don’t think so,” his dad grinned. “Tell you what, if you can wake up and brush your teeth in the next 10 minutes, I’ll make you whatever you want for breakfast.”

 _That_ got Isaac’s attention. Usually on school mornings he got something like oatmeal, cereal or toast for breakfast. His dad saved all of the good stuff for the weekends.

“You can have pancakes, or French toast, or scrambled eggs or waffles,” his dad listed. “Anything you want?”

“Can you put chocolate chips in the waffles?” Isaac asked hopefully.

“Be in the kitchen in 10 minutes and you’ve got yourself a deal.”

*** 

Isaac was in the kitchen in 5 minutes.

He even washed his face. 

***

The wonderful smell of waffles was wafting through Isaac’s apartment when the doorbell rang.

“I’ll get it!” Isaac yelled. He liked answering the door. Usually everyone at the door always wanted to talk to his dad, but Isaac never gave up hope that one day someone was going to ask for him. 

“Dr. Derek!” Isaac smiled as he opened the door. “What are you doing here? You were here last night! Are you staying for waffles too? My dad makes the best waffles. They have chocolate chips in them.” 

Isaac smiled up at Dr. Derek, hoping that he was going to stay over for breakfast. Last night had been so much fun, and if Dr. Derek was gonna have breakfast with them then that meant today was going to be a great day.

Before he knew it, Isaac was up in the air, courtesy of _AIR DR. DEREK._ He giggled with glee as Dr. Derek tossed him up in the air a couple times before turning to face his dad.

“I just happened to be in the neighborhood,” Dr. Derek said. “I would love to stay for waffles if it’s ok with your dad.” 

Isaac really wished he knew how to wink. It was really cool. He saw people do it in movies, and sometimes Ms. Allison winked at the class when she had a surprise for them. 

Dr. Derek’s wink was the best though.

***

Chocolate chip waffles were basically the best things in the entire world. Isaac could eat them all day. He tried to see if he could eat as many waffles as Dr. Derek, but he had to stop at 2 ½. He was full. He watched in awe as Dr. Derek at waffle after waffle after waffle.

It was the coolest thing in the world.

If Isaac couldn’t be a firefighter when he grew up, he wanted to grow up to be just like Dr. Derek. 

***

 _Rollie Pollie Ollie,_ was probably Isaac’s favorite TV show on Playhouse Disney. Isaac knew the song by heart and Ollie and Zowey were his favorite characters.

Dr. Derek’s chest was probably Isaac’s favorite pillow in the world. Dr. Derek was better than regular pillows because he was warm, and regular pillows didn’t kiss the top of his head. 

And his dad was Isaac’s favorite period. Just. Isaac loved him the most. 

This day off from school couldn’t get any better. 

*** 

On Tuesday Isaac had to go back to school. He was not a happy camper. Since it was a school morning, he was stuck eating oatmeal again. At least his dad was nice and put some raspberries and sugar in it. That way it wasn’t boring. 

“Dad do we have any leftover waffles from yesterday?” 

“Sure do pup,” his dad answered from the kitchen. “I don’t know how Dr. Derek didn’t eat them all. You want some for a snack?” 

“Yeah, can I have some and then extra so I can share with Danny?” 

“Of course bud,” his dad smiled. “I’ll put some in a baggie for you guys. Do you want to dip them in anything? Dr. Derek spread his with peanut butter. I can do that if you want.”

“Pudding!” Isaac grinned. “And applesauce.” 

“You’re going to get a cavity,” his dad smiled fondly. “I spoil you too much.”

Isaac beamed. Suddenly his oatmeal tasted a lot better. 

***

At recess Isaac broke out his baggie full of waffles and grabbed the pudding snack packs and applesauce from his lunch box. 

“Hey Danny, my dad made waffles yesterday and we have some extra. I bought some if you wanted to share them with me. I bought applesauce and pudding if you wanted to dip them in something.” 

“Yeah!” Danny smiled. “Can we go eat by the hopscotch? I don’t really want to play basketball with everyone else right now.”

“Ok,” Isaac agreed. He took Danny’s hand and the two of them walked towards the hopscotch area.

“Here,” Isaac said, holding out a baggie of waffles and a applesauce. “I know you like apple-raspberry flavored, so I asked my dad to pack it for you.” 

“Thank you,” Danny smiled back. “You’re really nice Isaac. I’m glad we’re boyfriends.”

“I’m glad we’re boyfriends too.”

Isaac and Danny spent the majority of recess talking and laughing about their weekends. Isaac told Danny how Dr. Derek came over on Sunday night and they watched the Lion King, and then he came over yesterday morning and watched Rollie Pollie Ollie and ate waffles. 

“12 is a lot of waffles,” Danny agreed, his eyes wide in amazement.

“I know!” Isaac exclaimed. “And he put peanut butter on them too!”

“But these waffles are pretty good,” Danny replied thoughtfully as he dipped his waffle in the applesauce. “Very good.”

Danny told Isaac that his mom hired a new assistant and that she worked around the house. Isaac didn’t know what Danny’s mom did for a living, but she always had a new assistant. Something about ‘not everyone’s perfect like me, Isaac.’

Isaac didn’t really remember. Ms. Lydia always had a secret stash of Girl Scout cookies, so she was good people in Isaac’s book.

“Hey guys.”

Danny looked over and rolled his eyes. “I thought you were playing basketball Dennis.”

“I was,” Dennis glared back at Danny. “But I got bored and I wanted to talk to my friend Isaac.”

“Dennis, I already said hi to you during science,” Isaac frowned slightly. “I’m talking to Danny right now.” 

“Why are you always so mean to me?” Dennis whined. “I want to be your boyfriend too Isaac.”

“I’m already his boyfriend,” Danny replied, as he got up. “Now go away or I’m telling.”

“Ms. Allison says you have to share,” Dennis pouted.

“You don’t share boyfriends,” Danny glared. “This isn’t a swingers party. Now go away.”

“Fine,” Dennis grumbled. He stomped away.

“Hey Danny,” Isaac asked quietly. “What’s a swingers party?”

“I don’t know,” Danny replied sheepishly. “I saw it on TV once. My mom watches it sometimes and she laughs at how ugly everyone is. So I just put two and two together.  Are you going to finish your waffle?”

Isaac giggled and handed Danny his waffle and his pudding cup. 

He had a great boyfriend. 

***

Honestly Isaac didn’t know why Dr. Derek didn’t just stay at his house. Because he was over for dinner again. 

Not that Isaac was complaining or anything.

“Dr. Derek!” he smiled, when Dr. Derek followed his dad into the apartment. “This is like the third time this week that you’ve come over to my house!”

Dr. Derek looked shocked. “Oh, I’m sorry pup, I can leave if you want me too." 

“No, no!” Isaac shook his head. “I want you to stay forever! I love you!”

“I love you too pup.” Dr. Derek smiled, kneeling down and giving Isaac a hug. “I’ll stay as long as you want.”

***

That night Isaac’s dad made manicotti. It was like spaghetti, but better. Isaac’s favorite part about spaghetti was the meat sauce that his dad made. But his dad never made enough sauce so Isaac was usually stuck twirling around spaghetti noodles on his plate. 

But manicotti was different. 

Manicotti had way too much meat sauce and not enough pasta noodle. And Isaac loved every minute of it.

***

After eating his fill of dinner (he still wasn’t able to eat as much as Dr. Derek) Isaac yawned and wandered into the living room to finish his homework. Dr. Derek helped him with the addition problems that were a little tricky.

For example, Isaac really didn’t care how many apples Bobby had if he started with 5 and gave 2 to his friend Sam. That was Bobby’s problem to keep track of his apples, not Isaac’s. 

Dr. Derek chuckled when Isaac voiced his concerns about Bobby’s apple problems. 

“I don’t care either pup,” he smiled. “But if I were you, I would write 3 apples as my answer.”

***

After his homework was done, it was time for bed. Apparently Dr. Derek wasn’t going anywhere anytime soon, so he helped Isaac brush his teeth and wash his face. Then he snuggled in bed with Isaac and read “Thomas the Tank Engine” until Isaac started to fall asleep. 

The last thing Isaac was consciously aware of was Dr. Derek turning off his light and leaving the room. 

“Goodnight pup,” he whispered. “I love you.”

“Love you too Dr. Derek,” Isaac murmured more to his pillow than anything.

He was asleep in seconds. 

*** 

Isaac was pretty sure that Dr. Derek was dating his dad. They tried to keep their kissing to a minimum when Isaac was in the room, but he wasn’t an idiot. He had a pretty good idea what happened when he left the room. 

And he was convinced that there was absolutely no reason for his dad to take 10 minutes to ‘walk Dr. Derek to his car.’

His dad was dating Dr. Derek.

Isaac was the proudest 5 year old in the world. 

***

On Saturday, Isaac found himself sitting in Danny’s room playing Pokémon on Danny’s Wii. 

Isaac liked Bulbusaur and Danny’s favorite Pokémon was Dratini. They were basically made for each other.

“Hi Isaac, how are you?” Ms. Lydia said as she poked her head into Danny’s room. 

“Good, how are you?” Isaac answered politely. A lot of people said that Lydia Martin-Whittemore was scary and a word that Isaac wasn’t allowed to say, but she had always been nice to him.

“Fine,” she smiled. “How’s your dad and Dr. Derek?” 

Isaac felt his face brighten at the mention of Dr. Derek.

“They’re great,” Isaac smiled. “Dr. Derek comes over to my house all the time. And sometimes he comes over for breakfast and dinner. He’s really cool. I love him a lot.”

“That’s sweet,” Ms. Lydia smiled. “Do you want anything to snack on? Danny told me about the waffles. We don’t have any of those, but I have chips and juice boxes if you want some.”

“Yeah,” Isaac grinned. “That would be great, thank you!” 

“Mom, can you make quesadillas?” Danny asked.

“Did you take out the trash this morning?” 

“No,” Danny muttered sullenly.

“You’re lucky Isaac is here,” Ms. Lydia smiled. “I’ll make quesadillas and I’ll have juice boxes and chips up in a little bit.” 

“Thanks mom!” Danny smiled in unison with Isaac’s, “Thanks Ms. Lydia.” 

“You boys play nice,” she called as she flipped her hair and exited room. 

“Sometimes my dad makes me scrub the toilet,” Isaac admitted once she left. “But I don’t always do it.” 

“I never take out the trash,” Danny smirked back. “And I always get quesadillas.” 

***

“No Dennis, you’re being a butthead.”

“No one asked you Danny!” Dennis snarled. “I’m first captain, and my rule is no packages.”

Danny groaned and let go of Isaac’s hand. “This stinks,” he muttered, kicking the pavement. “Dennis is always a butthead.”

Isaac’s kindergarten class had decided that they were all going to play kickball for recess that day. Usually whenever the entire class was going to play a game that involved teams, like kick ball or baseball, they would go into the class room and take out the basket that had everyone’s name in it. That way they would know who was first and second captain.

It was the first captain’s duty to make any extra rules for the kickball game. For example, if they were playing basketball, the first captain could say something like double points if a girl makes a basket. Or if they were playing kickball the first captain could say something like no ‘fast baby bouncys.’ 

Generally first captains picked a rule that the majority of the class agreed on. There were always some floaters here and there, but that was how democracy worked. You couldn’t please everyone, every time.

One thing first captains _never_ did was make the rule ‘no package deals’. That was the unspoken rule of being in Ms. Allison’s kindergarten class. If you were first captain, you never broke up the package deal that was Danny and Isaac. 

It was pretty much a scientific law. The sun rose in the east and set in the west, the ocean was blue and Isaac and Danny were a package deal at recess. It was pretty simple. 

Somehow, Isaac and Danny had become the unofficial mascot for their kindergarten class. It was like they were famous or something. One time a fourth grader asked if she could hold Danny’s hand, and Isaac told her (very nicely) to get lost. 

So yeah, they were a pretty big deal. Not that either of them minded. They just liked being together.

And they liked it when they were on the same teams during recess. 

Except now Dennis decided to fuck that all up.

“Fine Dennis, pick your first team mate,” a boy named Bennett spoke up.

“Isaac,” Dennis grinned.

Isaac groaned and trudged over to where Dennis was standing.

Predictably, Dennis picked everyone in the class except for Danny to be on his team, effectively separating Isaac from his boyfriend.

It was the worse game of kickball Isaac had ever played. 

***

Dennis’ terrors didn’t stop when recess ended either.

It was Danny’s turn to feed the class lizard, and while he was feeding her, Dennis slipped his nap mat in between Danny’s and Isaac’s. 

“Dennis!” Isaac cried. “You can’t do that! I always nap next to Danny!”

“Not today toots,” Dennis smirked. “Today you nap next to me.”

“Ms. Allison!” Isaac whined.

Unfortunately, Ms. Allison pressed a finger to her lips, wordlessly shushing Isaac. She raised her eyebrows, and Isaac got the hint. He sighed and laid his head down on his mat. 

“Good night Isaac,” Dennis whispered, patting Isaac on the shoulder. 

Isaac didn’t get a very good nap in.

***

“How was school bud?” Isaac’s dad asked when he picked Isaac up from school.  
  
“Bad,” Isaac muttered. “I don’t want to talk about it ok?” He reached his arms up signaling that he wanted his dad to carry him to the car. 

“Alright bud,” his dad frowned. “Do you think you’re going to be ok?” He picked Isaac up and balanced him on his hip, and pressed a kiss to his cheek.

“Yeah, I think so,” Isaac murmured into his dad’s shoulder.

“Love you buddy.”

“Love you too dad.” 

*** 

The pouring rain was a pretty accurate representation of the way Isaac was feeling right about now.

*** 

Isaac shouldn’t have been surprised that Dr. Derek was suddenly in his bed. He practically lived in Isaac’s house anyway. Isaac had seen the extra toothbrush in his dad’s bathroom. His dad’s mouth wasn’t that big. 

“Hey pup,” Dr. Derek whispered. He nuzzled his face into the crook of Isaac’s neck, and Isaac squirmed into Dr. Derek’s touch. There was something about touching Dr. Derek that made Isaac just feel a million times better. “Rough day?” 

Isaac sighed. He was feeling a little better, but he was still really mad at Dennis.

“Yeah,” he said into his pillow. “Dennis was being a butthead today. We were playing kickball at recess, and he was first captain and he wouldn’t let me and Danny be on the same team, even thought we’re always a package! 

Derek slung one arm around Isaac’s waist, pulling him in close. “What happened next?” he asked.

“At naptime, he put his mat in between me and Danny so we couldn’t nap next to each other, and I tried to say that I wanted to nap next to Danny, but Ms. Allison said ‘shhh’ and then I had to be quiet and nap next to Dennis.”

Isaac sighed softly, as he remembered all of the mean things that Dennis had done that day. 

“I’m sorry pup,” Dr. Derek said softly. “I know how much you don’t like him.” 

“He’s just really mean,” Isaac groaned. “And I keep saying that I don’t want to be his boyfriend because Danny already is my boyfriend, but he won’t leave us alone. Yesterday during snack time he took the last chocolate granola bar because he knows that chocolate is Danny’s favorite.”

Isaac burrowed himself deeper into Dr. Derek’s body. Maybe Dr. Derek could make everything go away.

The next thing he knew, he was being tickled without mercy. Isaac was laughing so hard that he was crying. Leave it to Dr. Derek to brighten his day.

“Stop Dr. Derek stop!” he giggled. “No more!”

“Feel better?” 

Isaac beamed and bobbed his head up and down.

Dr. Derek could make everything go away. Imagine that. 

*** 

When Isaac woke up the next morning, Dr. Derek was sitting in his kitchen eating some toast.

“What are you doing here?” Isaac asked. He wandered into Dr. Derek’s waiting arms and grinned as Dr. Derek kissed his forehead. 

“Your dad and I had a sleepover I guess.”

“That’s nice,” Isaac mumbled sleepily. “I’m taking your toast.”

***

A couple weeks down the road, Ms. Allison assigned her class a project. 

“Ok guys, we’ve been learning about animals a lot this week,” she said from the front of the classroom. “So you and a partner are going to do a project on your guys’ favorite animal.”

As soon as the word ‘partner’ was out of Ms. Allison’s mouth, Isaac locked eyes with Danny. Neither of them wanted Isaac to have to be Dennis’ partner.

“You guys are going to have to make a poster about your animal and present it to the class. You guys will have plenty of class time to work on this, but you might need to finish it after school if you don’t use your time wisely. Ok? Now everyone find a partner.”

As soon as Ms. Allison dismissed them, Danny was at Isaac’s side. Isaac smiled and put an arm around his boyfriend’s waist. Danny grinned at Isaac and kissed him softly on the cheek.

Out of the corner of his eye, Isaac saw Dennis glaring daggers at the two of them.  Danny stuck his tongue out at him, and Isaac did the same.

Served him right for ruining the kickball game and naptime the other week.

***

“What animal do you want to do?” Isaac asked Danny at lunchtime. They were sitting on the swings, _away_ from Dennis.

“My favorite animal is a rhino,” Danny said. “What’s yours?”

“A wolf,” Isaac answered. “Or maybe an elephant. Or a dolphin.”

“I like wolves too,” Danny nodded. “Do you want to do the project at my house this weekend? You could spend the night if you wanted to.”

“Ok, Isaac agreed. “I’ll ask my dad when he picks me up from school.”

“And I’ll tell my mom to text your dad when she picks me up later today.”

***

That Friday Isaac’s dad dropped him off at Danny’s house.

“Be good bud,” he said as he walked Isaac to the door. “And have fun.”

“Are you and Dr. Derek going on a date tonight?” Isaac asked. A couple of weeks ago his dad sat him down and told him that he and Dr. Derek were indeed dating. Like Isaac didn’t already know that. Dr. Derek was basically a glorified room mate. He was over at Isaac’s house almost as much as Isaac was.

“Yeah,” his dad grinned. “He’s taking me out to dinner tonight and we’re going to go see a movie.”

“That sounds fun,” Isaac nodded thoughtfully. “Danny and me are going to work on our project and then we’re going to stay up and make s’mores in his backyard. Danny says that his dad already cut the firewood.”

“Cool stuff bud,” his dad smiled as he rang the doorbell. Mr. Jackson answered the door. “Hey Jackson,” Isaac’s dad smiled.

“Stilinski,” Mr. Jackson nodded. “Got the kid out of your hair tonight?”

“You’re one to talk,” Isaac’s dad snorted. “Don’t think I don’t know what happens when Danny comes over and spends the night with us. You don’t say anything, and I won’t say anything.”

“I don’t need to say anything,” Mr. Jackson snorted. “Your neck does all the talking.” Then he turned to Isaac. “Hey Isaac, Danny’s upstairs in his room. He’s waiting for you.”

“Ok,” Isaac smiled. “Bye dad,” he smiled, squeezing his dad tight. “Love you.”

“Love you too buddy,” his dad smiled. “Be good, and I’ll see you tomorrow!”

***

Isaac wasn’t going to lie, their project looked pretty cool.

***

There was a substitute today in school. Ms. Allison got had to have an all day meeting with kindergarten teachers from other schools. Isaac hoped that she would come back soon. Because this substitute was really weird. His name was Mr. Harris and he didn’t know the rules of the classroom. He wouldn’t let them take their snacks out during recess time, even though the entire class told him that Ms. Allison always let them snack during recess.

So Danny and Isaac played on the slide on empty stomachs. It was a pretty lame recess period. It was hard to play on the slide when your stomach was making really loud growly noises.

***

Isaac got the sense that Mr. Harris really didn’t want to deal with kids today. Because not only did he let them have an extra long recess period (There was no way Ms. Allison would let them play on the slides that long.) he let them go out early to lunch.

At least this time Isaac was able to eat something during his extended visit to the playground. Dr. Derek had been over the previous night and in the morning he convinced Isaac’s dad to make them both pancakes. Isaac’s dad gave Isaac the extra to share with Danny, and now they were stuffing their faces with pancakes and applesauce.

Isaac never wanted to skip snack time again.

“Hey, Isaac and Danny do you guys want to play tag?” a girl named Peggy asked. “The whole class is playing.”

“Ok,” Isaac agreed. He grabbed Danny’s hand and led him towards the rest of their class mates.

***

Someone broke another rule. There were two unspoken rules in Ms. Allison’s class. The first one was that you weren’t allowed to break up the package deal that was Danny and Isaac.

The second rule was under _no circumstances_ did anyone at anytime tag Dennis if he was playing tag. Whenever Dennis was ‘it’ he made it his sole purpose in life to hunt Isaac down like a rabid wolf. He refused to tag anyone else. One time Peggy offered herself to Dennis so he could tag her, but Dennis had pushed her and continued chasing after Isaac.

Dennis got a time out that day.

Another time Dennis kept chasing Isaac even after the game was over. Danny actually had to tackle him to keep him away from Isaac.

Dennis got a phone call home that day. And Danny got a big hug from Isaac.

Usually Dennis being ‘it’ wasn’t a problem. Isaac was the fastest kid in class, and he ran just outside of Dennis’ reach until Dennis got tired and quit the game. But today since Mr. Harris didn’t let anyone have snacks during recess, Isaac was still feeling a little lightheaded, and he wasn’t as fast as he normally was.

“I’m it!” Dennis screeched.

The entire class collectively rolled their eyes and relaxed while Isaac started to run away.

“I’m going to get you Isaac!” Dennis yelled shrilly. Isaac was pretty sure his ears were bleeding.

As soon as Isaac started running he started feeling woozy. His dad always told him how important it was to stay hydrated, and since Isaac skipped snack time he didn’t get to drink his juice box, and Mr. Harris hadn’t let the class go and get water during class time.

So Isaac was probably a little dehydrated. He knew that he wasn’t going to be able to last much longer if he kept running, but he also didn’t want Dennis to catch him. He only had one shot.

Everyone knew that the parking lot was out of bounds. If you ran to the parking lot then whoever was ‘it’ had to leave you alone. Usually Ms. Allison stood in the parking lot, that was where she watched her class play, but today there was no one there, because Mr. Harris was napping in the classroom.

“I’m out of bounds,” Isaac called as he made it to the parking lot.

“I don’t care!” Dennis screamed. “I’m going to get you!”

“Dennis he’s out of bounds!” Danny called. “You have to tag someone else!”

“Shut up Danny!” Dennis yelled back. He continued chasing Isaac around the parking lot.

“Leave me alone Dennis! I don’t want to play anymore!” Isaac cried. He looked back over his shoulder to see Dennis gaining on him. Isaac closed his eyes and ran as fast as he could.

“Isaac, look out!” Danny screamed. 

***

Isaac never saw the car coming. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> For those of you who don't know who Roly Poly Oly, I have taken care of it. 
> 
>  
> 
> [Here](http://images.sodahead.com/polls/000973211/Rollie_xlarge.jpeg)
> 
>  
> 
> I'm practicing hyperlinks. :/


	12. Derek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Next update will be next week!!
> 
> I hope you are all enjoying the story so far.

Derek woke up the next morning feeling great. Last night had gone much better than expected. He and Stiles were officially dating, Derek got a great homemade meal, the cake had turned out delicious. Isaac promoted Derek to human pillow, and he and Stiles were officially dating. 

Oh wait, Derek said that already. 

Oh last night was also fun because he got to kiss Stiles on the lips! That had been a lot of fun too.

Derek rolled around his bed for a couple more minutes and decided to get up and go for a run. It was still early enough that he could wolf out and run around the forest before anyone would notice.

*** 

Derek ran around the forest for about an hour. He found and harassed a deer for a little while, chasing it in and around the forest. Finally when Derek got bored chasing the deer, he let it go. He was feeling a little too happy to kill anything that morning.

Derek stopped and sniffed his surroundings. He smelled two familiar scents; Stiles’ and Isaac’s. That stupid deer had ran all the way to the side of the woods closest to Stiles apartment. Derek yipped happily and trotted to the edge of the woods. He listened to Stiles chuckle as he presumably read the post it note that Derek had left on his bathroom window when he had disappeared to the bathroom before he had put Isaac to bed last night.

He listened as Stiles woke Isaac up and asked him what he wanted for breakfast.

Chocolate chip waffles are an excellent and delicious decision Isaac, thanks for offering. 

***

Stiles, Isaac and Derek were sitting at the table eating their weight in waffles. Actually Derek was eating his weight in waffles. Stiles was watching in awe, and Isaac was counting how many waffles Derek had eaten.

Stiles made really good food, and Derek could definitely get used to waking up to his cooking. And coming home to his cooking. And coming home to Stiles. And waking up next to Stiles.

And whoops, he was getting sidetracked. Back to the waffles. 

“Dude,” Stiles said. “You just ate 12 waffles. With peanut butter. That’s got to be some sort of record. How is that even possible?”

Derek just shrugged and took a bite out of Stiles’ unfinished 2nd waffle. “You’re a really good cook,” he said absentmindedly.

 “Yeah, but seriously dude. 12 waffles? Not to mention you drank most of the orange juice. How is it that you are so ripped? That’s not even fair.”

Derek shrugged again and kissed Stiles on the temple. “At least I’m going do the dishes.”

“Yeah you are,” Stiles smirked back. “But now I’m thinking that the dishes isn’t equal payment for the amount of waffles you just ate. I think we need to up the ante.”

“Shoot.”

“What do you think Isaac?” 

“Ummmm, Oh! You have to watch Playhouse Disney with me and dad!” 

Derek grinned. Spending time with his mate and his mates’ pup? What a punishment. 

“Good thing the waffles were good,” Derek joked as he got up to start the dishes.

“Yayyy!” Isaac cheered. He ran to the living room and turned on the TV. Derek laughed and plunged his hands into the soapy water.

“Thanks for coming by this morning,” Stiles said softly, coming up behind Derek and kissing the small of his neck. “Means a lot.” 

“I was just in the neighborhood,” Derek smiled, craning his neck to give Stiles a quick kiss on the mouth.

“Har har,” Stiles muttered. “Hope you like Rollie Pollie Olie, because that’s the only thing you’re going to be watching for the next two hours.” 

“As long as I have you two with me, I think I’ll be ok.”

 _That was not supposed to sound that cheesy,_ Derek thought.

“Cool it Casanova,” Stiles grinned, smacking Derek lightly on the ass. “We’ll see how you’re doing after episode three.”

*** 

Rollie Pollie Ollie was addicting. Jesus, that fucking theme song. Derek had already memorized it, and found himself singing along with Isaac as it played in the second episode.

_“He’s Rollie Pollie Ollie. He’s small and smart and round. And in the land of curves and curls, he’s the swellest kid around. Howdy…. Howdy. Hooray!.... Hooray! And in the land of curves and curls, he’s the swellest kid around._

“Swellest isn’t even a word,” Derek hissed to Stiles, who was sitting next to him. 

“Next time don’t eat so many waffles,” Stiles whispered back. 

Derek looked around the room at his mate sitting next to him, and his mates’ pup sitting and singing in his lap, and was content.

“Worth it,” he whispered back to Stiles. He kissed Isaac’s curls and resumed watching the TV.

_And in the land of curves and curls, he’s the swellest kid around…._

*** 

On Thursday Isaac and Stiles came in for his checkup. Derek didn’t even bother taking Isaac to the back room anymore. He pressed his ear to Isaac’s chest and flashed a thumbs up.

Now that he and Stiles were dating, there was really no need for this heart murmur drama. Derek needed to find a way to just sweep it all under the table. 

“I can come over tonight if you want me too,” Derek said to Stiles as the two of them watched Isaac play with the trains.

“Yeah,” Stiles said, leaning his head on Derek’s shoulder. “I’d like that.”

“Waffles for dinner?" 

Stiles grinned and elbowed Derek in the side. “Manicotti. And asparagus.”

“Sounds delicious,” Derek said as he kissed Stiles’ temple.

They were silent for a couple of moments, until Stiles’ spoke up.

“His heart is still ok?”

“It’s fine, Stiles.” 

“I just get worried sometimes. Ya know? He’s my world.”

“I promised you he was going to be ok. And I never break a promise.”

Stiles smiled and settled back into Derek’s shoulder. “Kay.” 

***

“So you and the Sheriff’s kid?” Dr. Graham smirked as he leaned on Derek’s doorframe. “I would’ve pegged you for more of the supermodel, trophy wife type. Stiles is kind of plain isn’t he?” 

Derek fought back the urge to show some fang, no one insulted his mate. Instead he glared at Dr. Graham and continued his paperwork.

“Anyway, I just wanted you to know that there’s a pediatrics meeting tonight. 7-9. The board is coming." 

“I won’t be there,” Derek replied as he started packing up.

“What, what do you mean you won’t be there?”

“I mean, I have dinner plans with my plain boyfriend,” Derek smiled. “Take good notes for me will you?”

Dr. Graham’s sputters were music to Derek’s ears.

***

“Hey,” Stiles said as he answered the door. “Manicotti’s almost done. It’s in the oven and-“

Derek cut him off, by kissing him roughly, passionately and for a lengthy amount of time. 

He was rewarded with his favorite blush ever. 

“Not that I don’t mind the extra affection, but what was that for?” 

“Dr. Graham. He’s being a dick,” Derek said. “Less talking, more kissing.” 

“I could be on board with that,” Stiles grinned.

They made out until Isaac yelled at them that the oven was beeping. 

***

One full moon, Derek wolfed out and ran to his parent’s and Laura’s graves. Instead of being buried in the Beacon Hills Cemetery, Derek had requested that they be buried in the forest behind Beacon Hills. He did this just in case he needed to them to calm him down during full moons like these. 

“Hey,” Derek whispered, as he curled around his mother’s gravestone. “I know it’s been a while since I’ve come by. But I’m finaly dating my mate. So that’s a good thing right?”

“Shut up Laura, I know what you’re gonna say. You’re gonna ask me how bad I fucked up so far because I’m socially awkward.”

“Well I haven’t fucked up. At least not too bad.”

“I might have told him that his pup had a heart murmur. I didn’t know what else to do! I was about to lose him for another 3 months, and I had to make sure I could see him more often.” 

“So he used to come by every week for his pup’s check ups, but we’ve started to get really close. And now we’re dating. “ 

“Like officially dating and everything. He’s kissed me and everything.” 

Derek could almost hear Laura cackling and rolling her eyes. “It’s a big deal Laura!”

 “You would’ve liked him too, Laura. He has this sarcastic attitude that you would have loved. The two of you together would make my life miserable. And he’s so smart. So smart. I know that he could do great things if he wanted to.” 

“He’s just perfect. I couldn’t have asked for anything more in a mate.”

“And you all would’ve loved Isaac, his pup. There’s no doubt in my mind that you all would’ve fallen in love with him the moment you saw him. He has this smile that brightens up the whole room. It’s cheered me up too many times to count.” 

He whined softly and curled tighter against his mother’s gravestone. “I miss you guys. Every day I think about how different my life would be if all of you were still alive.” 

Derek nosed each of his parent’s tombstones and Laura’s before getting up to go home. The sun was starting to come up, and he needed to get get ready for work.

“I promise I’ll try to come back more often,” he whispered. “I love you guys.”

*** 

Derek used to hate getting off work. Before it meant that he would be done working, go to the gym, and go home, where he would probably make a protein shake and dinner and go to bed early.

Now that he was dating Stiles, things were a little different.

For example, now Derek loved getting off work. Because now it meant that he could be done working, go to the gym, and go to Stiles’ apartment where he would have a nice dinner and would help Isaac with his homework. 

So it was a step in the right direction.

He even had a key. One night Stiles had to work a double shift at the library, and he needed someone to get Isaac home. Lydia and Jackson were busy, so Derek left work early and hung out with Isaac at Stiles’ apartment while they waited for Stiles to come home. Never wanting to worry about anything like that ever happening again, Stiles brought Derek a key at Isaac’s next check up. 

“Hey,” Stiles grinned, as Derek walked into the apartment. “How was your workout? You’re all wet.”  

“Good, a little sore, and that’s what happens when it rains outside. People get wet.” Derek smiled, taking Stiles’ hips in his hands and kissing him gently. “I worked shoulders and bi’s today. Where’s Isaac? And something smells really good.” He tried to stick a finger in whatever Stiles was cooking, earning him a swat on the hand.

“Down boy,” Stiles laughed. “It’s alfredo sauce. I’m thinking about doing chicken alfredo and broccoli tonight. And Isaac’s in his room. He had kind of a rough day. I guess that Dennis kid is really bothering him. I tried talking to him about it, but he said he wanted to be alone.” 

“Well, let’s see what I can do about that,” Derek frowned. He walked down the hallway to Isaac’s room.

Isaac was lying on his bed, face down on a pillow and unmoving, save for the rise and fall of his back showing he was breathing. Derek smiled slightly, and lied down next to the small boy.

“Hey pup,” Derek said softly, nuzzling his face into Isaac’s neck. “Rough day?”

“Yeah,” Isaac muffled into his pillow. “Dennis was being a butthead today. We were playing kickball at recess, and he was first captain and he wouldn’t let me and Danny be on the same team, even though we’re always a package!”

Derek had to bite back a laugh. He remembered packages growing up. No one had ever wanted to package with him. 

“What happened next?” Derek asked.

“At naptime, he put his mat in between me and Danny so we couldn’t nap next to each other, and I tried to say that I wanted to nap next to Danny, but Ms. Allison said ‘shhh’ and then I had to be quiet and nap next to Dennis.”

“I’m sorry pup,” Derek said comfortingly. “I know how much you don’t like him.” 

“He’s just really mean,” Isaac groaned. “And I keep saying that I don’t want to be his boyfriend because Danny already is my boyfriend, but he won’t leave us alone. Yesterday during snack time he took the last chocolate granola bar because he knows that chocolate is Danny’s favorite.”

“You’re right pup,” Derek agreed. “He is a butthead. But you want to know what will cheer you up?”

“What?” 

Derek responded by tickling Isaac until tears were streaming down his face. “Stop Dr. Derek stop!!” 

“Feel better?”

Isaac grinned and nodded. 

“Lets go get food,” Derek grinned, taking Isaac’s hand and leading him to the kitchen.

*** 

Probably the best chicken alfredo Derek had ever tasted.

***

“So thanks for cheering Isaac up today,” Stiles said. They were standing in the kitchen, and had just finished putting Isaac to bed. “He really likes you, you know.” 

“Really?” Derek smirked. “I had no idea. I thought he hated me.” 

“Are you this sassy at work?” Stiles grinned. He paused and listened to the rain. “It sounds like its really coming down hard.” 

“Yeah,” Derek agreed as he looked out the window.  Even against the night sky, the rain was beating heavily down on the windowpane. “I should get going. Gimme a kiss.”

“No, I don’t want you driving home in this,” Stiles blushed. “I’ve seen how you drive in your Camaro. I don’t need your reckless driving and this rain getting you killed. You can sleep with me.”

“It’s fine,” Derek smiled, as Stiles continued blushing. “I’ll drive slow.”

“Nope,” Stiles shook his head. “You’re staying. I don’t want to wake up to mangled Camaro on the morning news. Stay. Please?”

“Fine, “ Derek sighed, like it was some sort of hardship to share a bed with Stiles. They hadn’t actually had sex yet, but they had fallen asleep together. Stiles really liked being the little spoon, curled up against Derek’s back. And Derek had no problem with that sleeping arrangement, because it allowed him to nuzzle into Stiles’ neck while they slept.

“But I have to wake up early tomorrow. All of my scrubs are in the office, and Dr. Graham scheduled a 6 o’clock pediatrics meeting tomorrow morning.”

“Looks like we better get you to bed then,” Stiles grinned.

***

Derek missed his 6 am pediatrics meeting the next morning.

*** 

**To: Stiles Stilinski (5:00):** _It’s a date. :)_

Derek smiled and locked his phone. He had another date with Stiles on Friday. They had been going on a lot of dates since they had started dating, and Derek enjoyed each and every one of them. 

If he was honest with himself, he had the most fun when Isaac accompanied them on their dates. Of course Derek liked spending time alone with Stiles, but Stiles really seemed to relax when Isaac was around. And it wasn’t like it was a hardship to be around Isaac either.

Derek took out his calendar to mark that he had a date with Stiles that Friday.

“Shit,” he swore quietly. 

Friday was a full moon.

Derek frowned slightly. Normally being around Stiles on a full moon wouldn’t be a problem. Since Derek was a born werewolf and an alpha, he had almost total control over himself on full moons. As long as he shifted for a little bit before he picked Stiles up, he would probably be fine. Thankfully he was going to pick Stiles up at 7. If he got off work at 5, he could shift for a couple hours before going to pick Stiles up. 

That was the plan anyway.

*** 

When Stiles opened the door and his scent hit Derek’s nose, Derek almost wolfed out. 

Thanks to Dr. Graham and his fucking pediatrics meetings, ( _“You’ve missed the last three meetings Hale. I’m sure your boyfriend will understand that you need to be at this one.)_ he had only been able to shift for about 30 minutes. 

Nowhere near enough time to get all of the wolfy hormones out of his system. 

“Hey,” Stiles smiled.

“Hey to you too,” Derek gasped. He was desperately trying to keep his wolf under control. He wanted nothing more than to wolf out and nuzzle the fuck out of Stiles neck. He coughed to buy himself some time and kissed Stiles gently. “Ready to go?”

“Yeah,” Stiles blushed. “You driving or me?” 

Derek knew his eyes flashed. He couldn’t help it. Even during the daytime, Stiles’ blush set him on edge. During the full moon, Derek almost couldn’t control himself. He leaned forward and pressed his lips passionately against Stiles’.

“Me,” he growled slightly.

“Ok,” Stiles smiled. “I’m pretty sure I like the direction this date is heading.”

He kept blushing. 

Derek wasn’t going to be able to survive the night. 

***

Being so fucking close to Stiles’ on the full moon was heaven and torture at the same time. Having Stiles’ scent in such close proximity was driving Derek’s wolf crazy. Derek had made reservations at a fancier restaurant up in downtown Beacon Hills. Thankfully, downtown Beacon Hills had a lot of stoplights.

Derek nuzzled Stiles’ neck at every single one of them.

“You’re something else today,” Stiles murmured as he tilted his neck to allow Derek easier access. It was the fourth stop light in a row that his neck and been nuzzled He still smelled content, so Derek took that as a cue to continue nuzzling his neck. “Rough day at work?” 

Derek whined softly into Stiles’ neck. “You just smell so fucking good.”

“I guess I should shower more often,” Stiles joked. He ran his fingers lightly through Derek’s hair, earning another whine out of Derek.

 Derek nipped at Stiles’ neck and continued driving.

*** 

Derek barely made it through dinner, and the movie was even worse.

For starters, their waitress sat them at a table , isolating Derek from his favorite neck. It was tantalizing. Stiles’ neck was already starting to bruise from the near constant nuzzling that Derek put it through on the drive over here.

Now Derek was so far away, and he wanted to be closer to it. 

But aside from wanting to rip all of his hair out, Derek was fine.

They talked about Isaac, and how cool it would be if he and Danny actually got married like they said they were going to. They talked about how much of a dick Dr. Graham was and how absolutely useless those fucking pediatrics meetings were. Stiles told Derek more stories about his co-worker, Erica and how she wore halter tops to work. Stiles seemed convinced that she was trying to seduce some of the 70 year old regulars of the library. Derek told Stiles more stories about Scott the med-tech intern. 

It was just an all-around nice dinner, save for the fact that Stiles neck was calling to him.

***

Derek couldn’t even tell you what the movie was about.  It might have been a comedy, it might have been a horror film, it could’ve been a documentary about penguins. He had no idea. He spent the entire movie, from previews to the end credits, caressing Stiles’ neck with his face.

“You’re gonna fail the end of the movie quiz,” Stiles hissed. He had one arm around Derek’s shoulders and the other was in Derek’s lap, stroking Derek’s hands absentmindedly.

“Don’t care,” Derek whispered, biting gently on Stiles’ tendon. “Love you.”

“Love you too,” Stiles sighed contently.  

***

  **From Stiles Stilinski (4:34):** _Everyone has said something about the massive amounts of hickeys you left on my neck last night. I hope you’re proud of yourself._

 **To Stiles Stilinski (4:35):** _Immensely._  

*** 

“Hale you have EMT duty this week.” 

Derek choked on his coffee. “What? Why?”

They were all sitting in another absolutely pointless pediatrics meeting, at the ungodly hour of 6 in the morning. Derek had been falling asleep in his coffee.

“If you had been paying attention over the past 15 minutes, you would’ve met Dr. Anderson. He’s our new temp-pediatrician,” Dr. Graham said, rolling his eyes. “We’ve informed all the parents that he’s going to be taking over for this week on a trial basis. Don’t worry; your job isn’t in danger. We just want to get feedback to see if we want to hire him permanently.”

“I don’t see why I have to forfeit all my patients for a week,” Derek grumbled “And go on EMT duty either.”

“God pay attention Hale,” Dr. Graham said. “Davis called took his vacation this week and Matthews still has mono. We’re short EMT’s and we need you. I went over this.” 

“Whatever,” Derek grumbled. It was too early to be dealing with this.

“Don’t worry though, I still scheduled you and your boyfriend for his appointment,” Dr. Graham smirked.

“Wonderful,” Derek replied, refusing to give Dr. Graham the satisfaction that he had actually done something right. 

*** 

The first day of EMT duty sucked. There were no calls and Derek was just sitting around the hospital waiting for something to happen. He watched as Dr. Anderson took all of his clients and was very grateful when Agnes gave him an especially hard time.

At least Stiles and Isaac still belonged to Derek. 

*** 

“Beacon Hills EMT, this is Derek speaking. What is your emergency?” 

“Derek? Derek Hale? Oh thank god,” a frantic female voice came from the other end of the phone.

“Allison?” 

Derek felt a twinge in his heart. Please just let Isaac be ok.

“Yes.” Allison panted. “Derek we need an ambulance right now. One of the kids was hit by a drunk driver in the parking lot.” 

“We’re on our way,” Derek replied, signaling to the rest of the EMT’s to get in the ambulance. “Allison, who is it? Who’s hurt?” 

“It’s Isaac.”

***

When Derek saw Isaac lying in a pool of his own blood in the middle of the parking lot, he almost threw up. He had seen plenty of gruesome injuries in his career as an EMT, but no amount of training had prepared him for what happened when someone he cared about was in a life or death situation. Isaac’s heartbeat was faint and his breathing was _very_ shallow. The metallic smell of blood assaulted Derek’s nostrils. If Isaac didn't get medical attention soon... 

_No._

Derek was not going to think like that. 

He took a couple of quick shallow breaths before he let his wolf take over. He would not allow Isaac to die. Absolutely not. 

“Jenkins, Monroe, stabilize him. Morgan call the hospital,” Derek barked. “Tell Graham that we have a victim of a drunk driver. Possible concussion, heavy bleeding from the head area. Age 5 and a half, name Isaac Stilinski.”

Jenkins nodded and began stabilizing Isaac with the help of Monroe. Morgan ran into the ambulance to use the Emergency room hotline.   

“Have you called Stiles?” Derek turned to Allison.

“No, I haven’t had time,” Allison answered. There were tears in her eyes. “I’ve been trying to calm everyone down. They’ve taken this really hard. Especially Danny. Isaac’s a bit of a fan favorite in the class.”

Derek forced a smile and nodded. That sounded just like Isaac. “How did this happen?”

Allison broke eye contact and started fiddling with the hem of her shirt. “Don’t get mad. I know over the past couple of months you’ve become kind of like a second father to him, so don’t go berserk. It was an accident.” 

Of course, Allison would use the absolute worst tactic to try to calm Derek down.

“Allison. What. Happened.”

“They were playing tag at recess. Molly tagged Dennis, and then Dennis decided that he was going to tag Isaac no matter what. He really freaked Isaac out and started chasing him all around the school and into the parking lot. Isaac never saw the car coming.”

Derek gritted his teeth. He had never been so angry at a kindergartner.

Mother. Fucking. Dennis.

God.

And fucking drunk driver. 

“Call the cops,” Derek ground out. “I want that asshole behind bars for the rest of his life.” 

Morgan signaled to Derek that Isaac was stabilized, and Derek sprinted to drive the ambulance back to the hospital.

 _“He’s going to be ok,”_ he told himself. “ _He has to.”_  

*** 

The wait was agonizing.

“Let me help!” Derek screamed. “I want to save him!” He was straining against Morgan and Monroe’s grip. He was close to wolfing out, and barreling into the emergency room. His mate’s pup was so close, and Derek felt the intense need to protect and nurture.

“Get a hold of yourself, Hale,” Dr. Graham yelled as he slapped Derek across the face. “You’re in no condition to be in there right now. You’re hysterical. You’re attached to the patient which makes you operating on him morally unethical. Calm down and let the surgeons do their job. Go sit with your boyfriend. You both need all the comfort you can get.” Dr. Graham’s voice was gentle towards the end.

Derek stopped struggling as he saw the sense in Dr. Grahams words. He was in no condition to do anything beneficial to Isaac at the moment. As much as it sucked, Isaac’s life was out of his hands. Derek nodded and walked back over to where Stiles was sitting in the waiting area. 

“It’s going to be ok,” Derek whispered as he wrapped his arms around Stiles’ shoulders. “Everything’s going to be fine.”

Derek’s wolf whined as Stiles molded himself into Derek’s embrace. Derek sighed and kissed his mates’ temple.

God this was one of the worst days ever.

***

“Ummm, he doesn’t have a heart murmur. His heart is beating perfectly healthy. His blood pressure is 104 over 68, which is really good for a child his age. He can’t have a heart murmur with a blood pressure score that good, it’s highly unlikely that he ever had one. You’ve been misinformed sir.” 

 _“No, no, no,”_ Derek screamed internally. _“Not now! Not like this!”_

Stiles was shaking. Like he was literally vibrating with rage. And Derek could feel the absolute anger rolling off of him.

Derek was screwed. 

“What. The. Fuck. Derek? What the fuck was that? She said he never had a heart murmur, so what the fuck is going on?”

Derek knew that his relationship with his mate depended on how well this next conversation went. 

“Stiles…. I can explain...” Derek started.

“No, fuck you Derek. Fuck you. What the hell is your fucking problem? So Isaac was healthy the whole fucking time? Are you fucking kidding me? The whole time? So you’ve been lying about his heart condition for the past 6 months? For the past 6 months you’ve been lying to me… To us?” 

Ok, so not off to a great start.

“Stiles, I…”

When the tears started falling, Derek felt like the worst person on the planet. He had had plenty of chances over the past 6 months to sit Stiles down and tell him that Isaac didn’t really have a heart murmur. But each time he just didn’t do it. It had been easier just to lie.

And now that lie was coming back to bite him in the ass.

Hard. 

“I’m sorry but fuck you Derek. So what was this? Some elaborate scheme to get in my pants? Is that what this was all about?” 

Derek _desperately_ wanted to shake Stiles and tell him that he was all wrong. It was never about getting in Stiles’ pants. 4 months together and they hadn’t had sex, and Derek hadn’t even given it a second thought. It was about getting to know Stiles and falling in love with him. That this whole  heart murmur thing was just a misunderstanding.  Everything that Derek had done over the past 4 months, he meant it from the bottom of his heart. He really loved Stiles. He really loved Isaac. And he really needed them both in his life.

But Derek recognized that he had pretty much ruined his chances. Stiles was far too angry to listen to anything he had to say. 

“Don’t even fucking talk to me. I can’t even believe you Derek. I trusted you! Isaac trusted you! And you strung us along like we were fucking animals. I can’t even right now.”

_I trusted you._

_Isaac trusted you._

6 little words.

Huge  fucking heartache. 

Derek’s wolf ached to reach out and hold Stiles. To convince him that everything was going to be ok. 

“Don’t fucking touch me,” Stiles whispered as Derek stood up. Derek made a pained cry in the back of his throat. He needed Stiles to know how sorry he was. If he could just let him know… 

“I SAID DON’T TOUCH ME!” Stiles screamed. Derek yanked his hand back like he had been burned. But this pain was so much worse than any kind of burn that Derek had ever experienced.

This was isolation.

And it sucked.

“I trusted you Derek! I fucking trusted you! I trusted you with my feelings and my emotions. But most importantly I trusted you with my family. I thought you were different. I thought you really wanted to be a part of my family. I thought you cared about me. I thought you cared about Isaac.”

Derek was almost in tears himself. His wolf was whining loudly at the discomfort of its mate. The emotion building up in his chest was almost too much to bear.

“Don’t try to tell me how much you care. Don’t try to explain anything to me. I honestly can’t take any more lies right now. Clearly this was all an elaborate scheme to get into my pants. And I almost fell for it. It took my son almost dying for me to see that. I guess I am that pathetic.”

As Stiles gave Derek the play by play of the last 4 months, Derek was resigned to whispers and yes and no answers. He was convinced that he lost his mate forever. Stiles was fuming, and Derek couldn’t blame him. 

“Stiles, I never wanted to…” 

“You didn’t want to what?” Stiles cut in. “You didn’t want to hurt me? Is that it? Here’s a thought. Maybe you shouldn’t have lied to me in the first place. Maybe if you wanted to get to know me, you should’ve just asked me out for coffee. You didn’t have to bring my son into this! And you especially didn’t have to lie to me and tell me that he had a fucking heart murmur!! You knew how much he meant to me!”

“I didn’t know…,” Derek whispered.

“You didn’t know,” Stiles repeated bitterly. “Like that’s an acceptable excuse. Derek you lied to me about the well being of my son. He’s the world to me. Do you know how scared I was? Do you know the strain and stress that your fucking lie put on our relationship? I thought I was going to lose him!”

“I’m so sorry.”

“I think you need to leave,” Stiles replied, turning away from Derek. “I can’t even look at you right now.” 

“But…”

“Just go, Derek. Please just go.” 

***

Today was officially the worst day ever. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Since we're a little over halfway you guys can come over and say hi on [ tumblr ](http://superblanketman.tumblr.com)! 
> 
> Sometimes I reblog pretty pictures :)


	13. Stiles

The next day was one of the hardest days Stiles had ever been through.

**From Derek Hale (8:01):** _I’m so sorry._

**From Derek Hale (8:37):** _God Stiles, just please tell me what I can do to make it right. I know I fucked up really bad, but I need you and Isaac in my life._

**From Derek Hale (9:23):** _I meant everything I said while we were dating. Every. Single. Thing_

**From Derek Hale (9:45):** _Can you just let me know if you’re ok? Please Stiles._

**From Derek Hale (10:56):** _For what it’s worth, I love you._

**From Derek Hale (10:57):** _I will always love you._

**From Derek Hale (12:00):** _There’s manicotti for lunch in the hospital today. Thought of you. Please be ok._

**From Derek Hale (12:48):** _I’m so sorry._

**From Derek Hale (1:22):** _I just want you to know, the only lie I ever told you was that Isaac had a heart murmur, and I hate myself that I told you that. Everything else was true though. I love you. You make me smile. I love Isaac. He makes me smile. The past 6 months with you two were the best of my life and I would do anything to be able to spend more time with you._

**From Derek Hale (2:05):** _I never wanted to hurt you or Isaac. You both mean the world to me, and I would gladly give my life for the both of you. I’m so sorry for hurting you. That was never my intention._

**From Derek Hale (3:13):** _I love you._

**From Derek Hale (3:42):** _Can you tell Isaac I love him too? And that I’m sorry for everything._

**From Derek Hale (4:02):** _God Stiles, I miss you so much it hurts._

**From Derek Hale (5:15):** _Are you holding up ok? Jesus Stiles just let me know you’re alive._

**From Derek Hale (6:20):** _Damn it Stiles. Please just talk to me. Even if it’s just a text to tell me to fuck off and never talk to me again. I NEED to know that you’re ok._

**From Derek Hale (7:12):** _I called your friend Erica, she bitched me out a lot, but she told me you were ok. Please call me._

**From Derek Hale (7:35):** _The past 6 months were so amazing and I wouldn’t trade my time with you for anything. I love you and Isaac both so much and if it’s over between us I wish you the best. And I hope that you find someone that makes you happy and doesn’t lie to you like I did. I’m so sorry for everything._

**From Derek Hale (8:04):** _I love you so much._

**From Derek Hale (9:24):** _Goodnight Stiles. I love you always._

Stiles shut his phone off and wiped the tears from his eyes.

“No,” he whispered. “Not again. I’m not falling for it anymore.” 

*** 

The next 10 days were even worse.

Stiles took every precaution imaginable to avoid Derek. He switched supermarkets. He drove across town to get gas. He started driving the long way to go to work and pick Isaac up from school.

It sucked.

It absolutely sucked. 

*** 

Some days were better than others.

Some days he sat with his phone in his hand, fingers hovering over Derek’s number.

Some days he drove by the hospital. He never went in though. 

Some nights he thought about how long it had been since he had waffles.

Some days he felt really cold, even though the heat was on and he was wrapped up in blankets. 

Some days he read the text messages that Derek sent him.  

Some days he didn’t. He never deleted them though. He favorited all of them.

Some days he would sit on his bed and read Derek’s post it note over and over.

_I had fun last night. Thanks._

_-Derek_

Some days he would accidentally make manicotti or chicken alfredo for dinner and end up throwing it away because he couldn’t look at it without thinking about Derek.

Some nights he would accidentally cook for three people instead of two. 

Some nights he threw up.

Some days he hummed the Roly Poly Oly theme song over and over and over. Who cared if ‘swellest’ wasn’t a word?

Some nights when Isaac was sleeping, Stiles would go in his room and place his hand on his chest, listening to his heartbeat.

Some days he couldn’t stop thinking about Derek.

~~Some days he didn’t think about Derek at all.~~

*******

Isaac was probably taking the break up the hardest.

Stiles kept him home for a couple of days after the accident. He was lucid and responsive, which according to the nurse meant that he was going to make a full recovery. They had been most worried about short-term memory loss. 

Which turned out not to be a problem because Isaac remembered everything about the past 6 months.

He didn’t say anything during the first or second days, but he finally cracked on the third day. They were eating breakfast. It wasn’t waffles either.

“Dad, where is Dr. Derek?”

Stiles sighed and put down his fork. He knew this moment was coming, but he still wasn’t prepared. How do you tell your 5-year-old all that your boyfriend lied about you.  “Dr. Derek and daddy got into a big fight at the hospital. He probably won’t come back.” 

The look on Isaac’s face physically hurt Stiles’ heart. “But why?” he squeaked. “Dr. Derek said that he loves us!” 

“I know buddy,” Stiles said softly, tears brimming at his eyes. “But Dr. Derek did a really bad thing and scared me really bad.” 

“What did he do?”

“He said you were sick and you weren’t,” Stiles explained gently. “You never had a heart murmur buddy. Dr. Derek made the whole thing up.” 

“Did he say he was sorry?” Isaac asked seriously.

“What?” 

Isaac frowned and enunciated every word. “Did. He. Say. He. Was. Sorry.” 

“Umm.. yes?” 

“Did he mean it?”

“I think so.” 

“Then you should forgive him, because if he’s really sorry then that’s all that matters. You can’t be mad at him anymore.” Isaac nodded vigorously. “I miss him.” 

“I miss him too,” Stiles replied honestly. God he missed Derek. He wanted him back in his life so bad. But he didn’t want to get hurt again. He trusted Derek with everything. “I miss him a lot.” 

“Will you forgive him soon?” 

“I’ll try buddy.”

“Promise?”

“Promise.” 

Isaac got up and came over and climbed into Stiles’ lap. “I love you dad,” he whispered as he burrowed into Stiles’ chest. “I love you and I love Dr. Derek. He says he loves us too, and I believe him.” 

“I believe him too,” Stiles whispered into Isaac’s curls.

Neither finished their breakfast.

***

Stiles wished he had Isaac’s powers of forgiveness. He really did. It was evident that Isaac missed Derek’s near constant presence in their lives as much, if not more than Stiles. 

But Isaac hadn’t been worried for Stiles’ life; the way Stiles was worried about Isaac.

Isaac hadn’t already had someone leave him, the way Jenny had left Stiles.

The only things Isaac really had to worry about were how creepy Dennis was going to be at school and if his math homework was going to be too hard. Stiles worked hard to make sure that his son’s life was as easy as possible.

Stiles had different problems, problems that were a little more pressing. He had already taken a week off of work, so that was a week’s salary that was down the drain. Normally Stiles wouldn’t have had a problem with that, he lived well within his means and had saved a decent amount of money to use during times like these. 

However he didn’t plan on Isaac getting hit by a car, and the hospital bills that came with that. When Stiles opened the bill from the hospital, he almost passed out. There was no way he would be able to afford that on a librarian’s salary. He would have to ask his dad; because there was no way he was asking Derek.

He had to take care of himself, because it was becoming obvious that no one was going to put Stiles first. He had to do it himself. 

*** 

**To Derek Hale (7:50):** _Hi. (unsent)_

**To Derek Hale (7:51):** _I’m ok. (unsent)_

**To Derek Hale (7:52):** _I just need some time (unsent)_

**To Derek Hale (7:54):** _I love you too. (unsent)_

*** 

Erica called to check in on him and Isaac after a while. Isaac had pretty much begged to be taken to school because he missed Danny and all his friends, but Stiles still wasn’t feeling up to being around people. 

“The doctor told me to make sure that he remembers everything, and to make sure that his eyes are focused when he talks to me. He says he feels fine, and it’s been a week, so the doctor told me that he could go back to school. He’s excited to see Danny again.”

“Sounds like a good thing to do,” Erica replied over the phone. “But he’s a strong kid. I’m sure he’ll make it through ok. How much time do you want to take off this week? I’ll have Delilah and Margot cover for you.”

“I’m not sure. I should probably come in tomorrow huh? Isaac’s already back at school and I’m still trying to put myself back together.” 

“Stiles, have you talked to Derek? Maybe you-” 

“Don’t Erica. I know what you’re going to say. I’m not calling him. I’m not talking to him ever again.”

“Stiles, I know you’re upset and hurt. But can you just listen to me? Please.”

“I don’t want to hear it.”

“Stiles please. I…“ 

Stiles hung up the phone. 

***

Erica was at his house in 10 minutes.

“Sit.” She ordered. “Now.” 

Stiles sat.

“Ok. Look,” she started, eyes narrowing slightly. “I’ve been pretty lax about this whole break up thing. I’ve given you your space; let you mope around for a week, the whole 9 yards. But as your best friend I’m not going to let you sit around and be miserable for the rest of your life.”

Stiles didn’t say anything.

“So here’s what you’re going to do. You’re going to call him. And you’re going to listen-“

“I’m not calling him.”

Erica blinked. She looked shocked that Stiles actually had the _audacity_ to interrupt her. “Excuse me?”

“I said I’m not calling him,” Stiles muttered, looking at the floor. “I have nothing to say to him.”

“Honestly Stiles, you’re dumber than I thought,” Erica snorted, rolling her eyes. “No one is the bad guy here. Derek made a very dumb mistake. But if you can’t see that he did it because he genuinely liked you and genuinely wanted to get to know you, then you’re just as dumb as he is. 

“Did you really just say that no one is the bad guy here, Erica? Really? He told me that Isaac had a fucking heart murmur! Like who does that? All he had to do was say, ‘Hey, Stiles I really like you. Maybe we should go out sometime.’ That would have been fine. But no, he had to tell me that my son had a irregular heartbeat!”

“I seem to remember him telling you that heart murmurs were generally harmless,” Erica replied, tapping her chin. She was pretending to be deep in thought because she knew that it would piss Stiles off. “So unless ‘generally harmless’ is a secret doctor code for “99% fatality rate’ I think you may have blown the whole heart murmur thing a little out of proportion.”

Erica’s chin tapping successfully pissed Stiles off. 

“Are you seriously taking his side right now?” Stiles shouted. “I can’t believe you! He had so many chances when we actually started dating to tell me that Isaac was perfectly healthy. But he didn’t! He kept me worried about my son for 6 months, when I didn’t need to be! That’s not cool Erica, and you know it! So if he’s miserable right now then it’s no ones fault but his own.” 

“Finished?” Erica asked, quirking an eyebrow. “Because I don’t do well with people yelling at me.”

Stiles nodded as the red started to leave his face. 

“I’m not his taking side,” Erica replied calmly. “I’m not. I promise. He called me last week and I cursed him out for about 20 minutes. I’m always on your side and you know this. But you and Derek are on the same side. You really are, you’re just too angry and hurt to see that.” 

Stiles turned away. He hated when Erica was right. 

“Stiles I know you were worried about Isaac. But every Friday when I asked you how Isaac’s check up went you talked about Isaac’s heart murmur for maybe 20 seconds, and then I got the play-by-play of your most recent conversation with Derek.” Erica paused, and sat down next to Stiles. “I’m not saying that you were a bad parent, but when you were sure that Isaac was out of harms way, you couldn’t wait to tell me how awesome Derek was, and how he made you smile. So now that Isaac is permanently out of harms way, why haven’t you talked to Derek yet?”

“I’m scared,” Stiles answered honestly. 

“That’s what I thought,” Erica said thoughtfully. “Let me see if I got this right. You love Derek right?”

Stiles nodded.

“Like you really love him right? Like wet dreams and everything?”

Stiles blushed and nodded, because yeah, _those dreams._

“But Derek isn’t the first person you’ve loved is he?” 

Stiles blinked back tears because _fucking Erica would._

“Stiles look at me.” When Stiles didn’t, Erica grabbed his face with one hand and turned it towards her. “Derek. Is. Not. Jenny. Do you understand me? He’s not going to leave you. He wants to support you; he wants to be with you. He loves you and you love him. For the past 6 months you’ve been happier than I’ve ever seen, and I know that Derek is to blame for that.” 

Stiles didn’t say anything.

“Jenny left you because she couldn’t deal with Isaac. She was weak and she wasn’t ready to be a mother.” Erica continued. “The entire city knows that. They also know how much Isaac means to you. Derek knows that too. He loves Isaac almost, if not as much as you do. He wants to be part of your family. All you have to do is let him.”

Stiles still didn’t say anything.

“I have to go,” Erica said, as she got up. “Boyd’s taking me out tonight. Promise me you’ll think about it ok?”

She playfully punched him on the shoulder and walked out.

***

Getting grilled by his 5 year old was not how Stiles had been planning on spending his night.

Also, Isaac had been watching way too much TV.

*** 

Three days after Erica came by, Stiles got a letter.  

He opened it at 4:45.

_Stiles-_

_I know you’re probably still mad at me, and I know you probably don’t want to talk to me ever again. I wish I could say that I was ok with that, but I’m not. I’ve been fucking miserable the past 3 weeks, and I wish that I could turn back time and just ask you out for coffee instead of lying to you from the beginning._

_Erica yelled at me. A lot. She told me how much I hurt you, and I never wanted to do that. I had been trying to talk to you for months, and I didn’t know how. I thought that maybe if I could see you more often maybe you would want to date me. That’s why I told you that Isaac had a heart murmur. It was the only thing I could think of to keep you coming back to see me._

_I want you to know that every time you asked me about Isaac’s heart murmur I felt terrible. I felt terrible that I was lying to you, and I felt even worse that I was making Isaac suffer. It’s not my proudest moment by a long shot. I wanted to tell you that he was fine so many times, but I was afraid that when you found out you wouldn’t want to date me anymore. And that scared me, because I can’t imagine life without you._

_I hate that I sound like a desperate ex-boyfriend, but God Stiles, you don’t know how much you and Isaac mean to me. I would literally kill someone to make sure the two of you were safe. No questions asked. You both make me so happy, and I think I smiled more in the past 6 months than I had in my entire life._

_I know you’re stuck on the whole lying about Isaac’s heart problem. And I completely understand that. It was a horrible mistake on my part, but I need you to know that that was the ONLY lie I told you while we were together. When I told you that I loved you, I meant it. When I told Isaac that I loved him, I meant it. I just wanted to make sure that you knew that._

_If you don’t to ever see me again, that’s fine. If you want I’ll leave Beacon Hills completely and totally. I already sent my resume’ to some hospitals on the East Coast, so if you want me to leave I understand. Your whole life is here and even though I wish I could be a part of it, I get if you don’t want to see me ever again. I hurt you, and that’s something I never wanted to do._

_Attached is a check for $10,000 and the house key that you gave me. I know that you took some time off from work and I can only imagine what Isaac’s hospital bills look like. Please take the money and use it however you see fit. As far as the house key goes, you gave it to me because you trusted me. Eventually I’d like to earn that house key back. I want you to be able to trust me again._

_I love both you and Isaac so much. And I’m so sorry for everything I put you through. I hope that you can give me another chance._

_Love always,_

_\- Derek James Hale_

***

Stiles was speechless for a moment. He read over the letter two more times and turned the check over in his hands. 

$10,000 dollars. 

Derek had sent him $10,000 dollars because he knew. He _knew_ that Isaac would have monster hospital bills, he _knew_ that Stiles hadn’t been going to work and would be short on cash. He _knew_ Stiles. And it made Stiles' heart ache.

But it wasn’t the cash that made Stiles take out his phone. It was the key. Derek gave it back and said that he wanted to earn it again. And that’s when it all clicked in Stiles’ head. Yes, Derek had made a mistake. But Derek was sorry. Derek was sorry and he truly wanted Stiles and Isaac back in his life.

Isaac was right, he couldn’t be mad at Derek anymore. 

The fact that Derek was willing to earn back Stiles’ house key was reason enough in itself. Stiles remembered to look on Derek’s face when he first gave him the key. It was a look of pure happiness and joy. It must have been incredibly hard to Derek to give it back to Stiles. 

But Derek was trying. He was trying anything and everything to win Stiles back. To show Stiles how much he loved him and how much Stiles and Isaac meant to him. And that’s all Derek had been trying to do from the start. That’s’ where the lie came from.

Of course Stiles knew that Derek would never had lied if he knew that it would’ve played out the way it did, but the fact that he was willing to go to such lengths just to be able to talk to Stiles showed so much. Someone was finally putting Stiles and Isaac first, and Stiles would be an idiot if he pushed someone like that away. 

*** 

**To Derek  Hale (4:59):** _Can you come over tonight? Please? Like right now? I need my boyfriend back._

*** 

At 5:12 there was a knock at his door. 


	14. Isaac

Isaac was dreaming. It was almost the same dream that he had earlier. 

He was running in a big field with his dad and the big black wolf. The wolf had red eyes, but he wasn’t scary. He was really friendly and really nice and he kept licking Isaac’s face. Isaac was giggling and rubbing his face in the wolf’s fur. It was surprisingly soft and it smelled good. His dad was cuddling with the wolf too, and the big wolf alternated between licking Isaac’s face and nosing his dad’s neck. 

Then there was this weird beeping sound, and Isaac didn’t like it. The wolf was whining softly and Isaac’s dad was saying something weird. 

“Isaac, can you hear me buddy?” 

“I’m right here dad,” Isaac frowned. “Make the beeping stop. I don’t like it, and Mr. Wolfy doesn’t like it either.” 

The beeping sound got louder. 

“Isaac you have to wake up buddy,” his dad was saying. But his voice sounded weird, like it was far away, even though his dad was right next to him. 

The wolf whined louder and soon everything started getting fuzzy. Isaac wrinkled his nose when he woke up, that had been a great dream, and he really wanted it to be real. 

“Oh thank God,” his dad said. “You’re alive. You’re alive.” 

And then Isaac remembered everything. Playing tag with Danny. Running from Dennis. The horn honking. And then he was falling and he hit the pavement. And now he was waking up. 

“Dad…” he whispered. “Am I alive?” 

“You’re alive, baby boy,” his dad smiled through his tears. “You’re alive.”

***

Isaac was confused on why Dr. Derek wasn’t at the hospital when they let him leave. Dr. Derek worked at the hospital. When he wasn’t at Isaac’s house he was working at the hospital. So where was he? 

Oh. 

Duh. 

If he wasn’t at the hospital, that must meant he was waiting for Isaac when he got home! Dr. Derek had been spending a lot of time with Isaac and his dad lately. He was obviously going to surprise Isaac when he got home. 

Maybe he was making waffles!

***

Dr. Derek wasn’t at home. 

There were no waffles.

Isaac tried not to cry. 

***

Two days. Two days since Isaac had seen Dr. Derek. And his dad had that look on his face. The look when he was really sad. It didn’t take a rocket scientist to put two and two together. 

Something happened with Dr. Derek and his dad. Something bad. Isaac just wanted everything to be ok again. 

***

So Isaac never had a heart murmur. Big deal. Isaac was mad at Dr. Derek for maybe 5 seconds. When he really thought about it, there was no harm done. Isaac never had to take any pills, he never had to go in for surgery, and barring the time when he was in the emergency room, his visits to the hospital had actually been enjoyable. 

He didn’t see why his dad was making it such a huge deal. 

Isaac was fine. Isaac had always been fine. 

And his dad loved Dr. Derek. Isaac didn’t get why his dad was making everyone suffer. His dad was suffering because he missed Dr. Derek. Isaac was suffering because he missed Dr. Derek too. And Isaac was pretty sure that Dr. Derek was suffering because he missed both Isaac and Isaac’s dad. 

Isaac rolled his eyes as he finished his puzzle. His dad could be an idiot sometimes. 

***

There was a kid in the 5th grade class who said that anyone who liked going to school was a loser. So Isaac guessed that he was a loser, because he really wanted to go back to school. Sitting around home all day was boring. And his dad was asking him all these questions that Isaac already knew the answer to. 

“What’s your name buddy?”

“Isaac.” 

“How old are you?” 

“5 and three quarters.” 

“What’s your boyfriend’s name?” 

“Danny Mahealani,” Isaac frowned. “Dad, I already know all this stuff. Can I go back to school now? I miss all my friends!” 

“I guess you can go back tomorrow,” his dad smiled softly. “I love you, can I have a hug?”

“I guess,” Isaac grumbled. “I miss Dr. Derek,” he whined as he wrapped his arms around his dad’s neck. “Can you tell him I say hi?” 

“I don’t know yet buddy,” his dad said. “Maybe.” 

Isaac groaned and unlatched his arms. “I’m going to play with my trains.” 

***

The next day Isaac went back to school. 

“You’re back!” Danny smiled, enveloping Isaac in a big hug. “I missed you so much.”

“I missed you too Danny,” Isaac smiled as Danny kissed his cheek. “But I’ve only been gone for 4 days.” 

“Too long,” Danny smiled. “Are you hurt? Do you have any stitches?”

“I have three staples right here,” Isaac replied, lifting up his curls to show Danny his staples. “They only hurt if I touch them. My dad won’t let me do that either, or he says I will get an infection.” 

“I missed you so much,” Danny smiled as he wrapped his arms around Isaac again. 

“I missed you too,” Isaac whispered into Danny’s shoulder. 

***

Everyone in class wanted to see Isaac’s stitches. Good thing today was show and tell day. 

***

Ok this was getting ridiculous. His dad was saying Dr. Derek’s name in his sleep. 

“It’s ok, Derek.” 

“I forgive you Derek.” 

“I love you so much Derek.” 

If his dad wasn’t going to do something, then Isaac guessed that he would have to do something instead. 

***

“Stiles, it is three in the morning. You better have a good fucking reason for calling me.” 

“Ooh, Ms. Erica you said a bad word!” 

“What the… Isaac? Why are you calling me honey? Is everything ok? Is your dad ok?” 

“No,” Isaac wrinkled his nose. “Dad is saying Dr. Derek’s name in his sleep. He keeps saying that he misses him and that he loves him, but he doesn’t do anything when he’s awake. I miss Dr. Derek, Ms. Erica.”

“Oh honey, I’m so sorry,” Ms. Erica cooed over the phone. “I hate to say this, but your dad is an idiot.” 

“I know,” Isaac agreed. Ms. Erica was smart. He heard some people saying that she dressed like a slut, but Isaac didn’t even know what that was. It was probably a good thing though, because Ms. Erica was one of the smartest and nicest people he knew. “I just want him and Dr. Derek to be boyfriends again. Now my dad is all moody and stuff. And I haven’t seen Dr. Derek in forever!” 

“I’m sorry, Isaac,” Ms. Erica said softly. “I want your dad and Dr. Derek back together too. I tried talking to both of them, but your dad is stubborn and Dr. Derek is kind of a weenie.” 

“What if I tried talking to my dad and you talked to Dr. Derek again?” Isaac suggested. He had 5 and three quarter years of experience getting what he wanted out of his dad. They were about to come in handy. “Maybe I could get them back together again.” 

“That sounds like a great idea Isaac,” Ms. Erica yawned. “Tell you what. I’ll come by your house tomorrow and yell at your dad while you’re at school. Then you can talk to him when you get home. And I’ll talk to Dr. Derek the next day. Sound good?”

“Yeah,” Isaac nodded. “Thank you Ms. Erica. Goodnight.” 

“Goodnight Isaac, you devious little thing you. You’re lucky you’re cute.”

Isaac grinned as he hung up the phone. Operation: Get dad and Dr. Derek back together was a go. 

***

“Dad we need to talk,” Isaac said. He had rolled out his dad’s office chair and turned it around so the back of the chair was facing his dad. He had seen it in movies all the time, and Ms. Erica said that it would be a great idea. The bad guy turned his chair around slowly and was always stroking an evil looking cat. 

But Isaac didn’t have a cat. So he grabbed his wolf plushie instead. When he successfully turned the chair around, the look on his dad’s face was priceless. 

“Sit down,” he said, gesturing to the couch. “You and me need to have a little talk.” 

“What’s going on here buddy?” his dad asked, trying to keep the laughter out of his voice. 

Isaac frowned. This was no laughing matter. Isaac missed Dr. Derek and he was determined to get his dad and Dr. Derek back together. No matter what. 

“I miss Dr. Derek,” he said plainly. “And you miss him too.” 

His dad sighed and wiped his face with his hands. “I know you do buddy,” he sighed. “But Dr. Derek really scared me and I don’t think I should be around him right now” 

“You say his name in your sleep,” Isaac huffed. “You keep saying how you forgive him, but then when you wake up you don’t call him or anything.” 

“I know buddy, I just need some more time.” 

“It’s been forever!” Isaac cried, tears brimming around his eyes. “I love Dr. Derek and I haven’t seen him in so long. And we haven’t had waffles or pancakes or anything yummy for breakfast. All it’s been is crummy oatmeal.” 

“I can make pancakes,” his dad tried. 

“Yeah, but you’ll throw them away like you did with the manicotti,” Isaac pouted. “I saw you throw it away and you never waste food.” 

“I don’t know Isaac. I’m not sure I’m ready.” 

“Dad, I’m ok,” Isaac said. He was pulling out the big guns just like Ms. Erica had told him to. “Dr. Derek didn’t hurt me. He loves me and he loves you. He even told me that he loves you! It was supposed to be a secret, but I know you knew already.” 

“He said you had a heart murmur!” his dad cried. “Isaac I was so scared, I thought I was going to lose you.” 

“I was the one who had the heard murmur,” Isaac replied. “And I wasn’t scared. Dr. Derek always told me that I was going to be ok. And I believed him. And you should believe him too.” 

Isaac pouted some more and walked away towards his room. If his dad wasn’t going to talk to Dr. Derek then Isaac didn’t know what to do. 

He should probably just prepare for a life without Dr. Derek. It was going to suck for everyone. 

***

Thank the Lord Dr. Derek showed up three days later.


	15. Derek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm going to try to wrap this up next Wednesday!  
> It might stretch to two weeks, depending on how I split it, but there's definitely at least one more update left. 
> 
> Thanks for reading!

Derek sent Stiles 19 text messages the first day after the hospital fiasco. He got 0 replies.

He called Erica as a last resort. 

*** 

“Hello?”

“Hi, is this Erica?”

“…Derek.”

“Yeah,” Derek swallowed nervously. “Umm, hi.“ 

“You have to have some _huge_ balls to be calling me right now.”

“I know… I just…. Have you talked to Stiles today?”

“I have.” 

Derek let out a huge sigh of relief. If Stiles had talked to Erica that meant that he was alive and that he hadn’t done anything stupid. If Stiles decided he never wanted to talk to Derek again that would be one thing, but Derek wouldn’t be able to live with himself if his mate did something stupid. 

“Ok,” Derek said. “Thank you. That’s all I wanted to-“ 

“You’re a real fucking _dick,_ you know that?”

“What?”

“What you did to Stiles. It was shady and it was totally a low blow. Seriously you told him that Isaac had a heart murmur? Why didn’t you just tell him that he had three weeks to live? It would’ve had the same effect. You know how protective Stiles is of Isaac. Not your brightest moment there, Hale.” 

“I know,” Derek sighed. “I never meant to hurt him and I never wanted him to find out like that. I just couldn’t think of anything else to do to get him to keep coming to see me. That’s why I did it. I kept telling him that heart murmurs were generally harmless and that Isaac was going to be fine, I just never expected him to blow it that far out of proportion. I fucked up, and now he won’t answer any of my calls.”

“Can you blame him?” 

“No, I know I would be really upset if I found out my pup had been healthy the whole time and I had been worrying for nothing.”

Derek could _hear_ Erica smirking and rolling her eyes. “Look. Derek. By no means am I saying what you did was right. Because we both know it wasn’t. But I understand why you did it. You love Stiles, and you would do anything to be back with him right?” 

“Yes,” Derek answered quickly. “Of course.”

“Then give him time. You fucked him up pretty bad. Knowing Stiles he’s probably trying his best to hate you right now.”

“He hates me?” Derek choked out. 

“ _Trying_ to hate you,” Erica corrected. “ He couldn’t hate you if his life depended on it. He loves you too much. He’s just really fucking angry and hurt right now. He’s kind of losing his mind. But he doesn’t hate you. Trust me.”

“Did he.. Did he say anything about me when you talked to him? Did he say how Isaac was doing?” 

“Oh baby you’ve got it bad,” Erica cooed. “If you must know, he said that you were a horrible fucking person and it was unfair that someone so attractive as you could be so fucking bad. He also went on to say that he hoped he never saw you again as long as he lived. And that’s the watered down, paraphrased version.”

“Ouch,” Derek said quietly. “And Isaac? He’s doing ok?”

“He’s got a mild concussion, so Stiles is keeping him at home for a couple of days, but other than that he’s fine. I think Isaac’s biggest concern is that you haven’t been around today. He misses you almost as much as Stiles does.” 

Derek let out a sigh of relief. Even if his mate and his mates’ pup never talked to him again, Derek wouldn’t be able to live with himself if anything happened to them.

“So Derek what’s your game plan for winning Stiles back?” Erica asked, breaking him out of his thoughts. 

“I don’t know,” Derek replied honestly. “I never expected this to turn out the way it did. I never expected that he would find out like this and break up with me,” he finished quietly.

“Do you want some advice?”

“Of course! Anything!” 

“Give him some space for a couple of days,” Erica said sagely. “He’s really upset and irrational. If you keep texting and calling him, it might just make him angrier. Let him burn himself out for a while. That way when he does decide to talk to you, he’ll be thinking a lot more clearly.” 

“So just leave him alone?” Derek repeated doubtfully.

“Yup. He’ll come around eventually. Like I said he still loves you, he’s just really fucking pissed right now.”

“Ok,” Derek said softly. “Ok, I can do this. Thank you so much Erica.” 

“Of course, I’m pulling for you guys. I have to say, you guys are cute together.” 

“Thank you.”

“Good luck Derek. Remember what I said.” 

“I will. Bye.”

“Buh-bye.” 

*** 

The next day he sent Stiles 23 text messages and called him twice. 0 replies and 0 returned calls. 

Derek had an all day pediatrics meeting the third day, apparently Dr. Anderson wasn’t’ as good of a pediatrician as he claimed to be. Regardless, Derek wasn’t able to send as many text messages as the two previous days, only 14, but he still didn’t get responses.

The fourth and fifth days he sent a combined total of 45 text messages to Stiles. Still 0 replies.

*** 

On the fifth night Derek took a walk to his parent’s graves. He wolfed out, he felt more connected to them that way. 

“I messed up,” Derek confessed. He got on his knees and rested his forehead on his mother’s gravestone. “I messed up really bad.”

“My mate… he…. He found out that his pup didn’t really have a heart murmur. I’ve never seen him so angry. So angry at me.”

Derek wiped the tears from his eyes. “He was so upset. And I can’t blame him. I did that to him. I’m the one who caused him all that pain.”

“I just… I miss him. I miss him and his pup. And I’ve tried apologizing more times than I can count. He just doesn’t want to listen to anything I have to say.”

“What should I do?” 

“He won’t answer his phone, he hasn’t come by the hospital, and I’m pretty sure he’s switched grocery stores, because I can’t smell his scent at Safeway anymore.” 

“I thought life was supposed to be easier once you found your mate, I guess not for me.” 

Derek curled around his mother’s gravestone and slept until morning. 

***

Thursdays used to be Derek’s favorite days of the week. Thursdays were the days that Stiles and Isaac came into the hospital. Before he started dating Stiles, Derek had really looked forward to them. He got to see his mate and his mate’s pup, and even though the circumstances weren’t the best it was still very good to see them. 

Even after he started dating Stiles, Derek still looked forward to Thursdays when Stiles and Isaac would come in. Usually Derek would schedule his worst appointments Thursday morning, so that he could get them out of the way and so that Isaac and Stiles could _really_ brighten up his day when he saw them that afternoon. You have no idea how idea how nice it is to see your mates’ pup running towards you, arms outstretched, moments after you gave Agnes a shot.

Now… Now Thursdays were miserable. 

Derek still had to deal with Agnes and the rest of the little shop of horrors on Thursday mornings. The difference was his mate and his mates’ pup didn’t come in in the afternoon. To make matters worse, Derek hadn’t scheduled any appointments for Isaac’s usual time spot, so when 3:00 came around Derek felt emptier than usual.

The first Thursday after the accident was the hardest. Derek clung to a sliver of hope that Stiles would bring Isaac in, but when the clock struck 3:45, Derek knew it was a lost cause.

The whole point of the hospital appointments was to make sure that Isaac’s ‘heart murmur’ was under control. Now that Stiles knew that Isaac didn’t have a heart murmur, there was no reason for him to bring him into the hospital. It didn’t help that Stiles didn’t want anything to do with Derek either. 

He still hadn’t been answering any of Derek’s texts or calls. 

***

Erica walked into the Derek’s office a few days later. 

“Erica?” Derek frowned. “I’m with a patient. You can’t be in here.” Although secretly Derek was very glad she was there. Agnes was being a royal bitch that day. 

“I can wait,” Erica replied pointedly, sitting down in one of the chairs in his office. She examined her nails while she waited for Derek to finish his appointment.

“No I meant in the waiting room,” Derek growled.

“Nah,” Erica said, clearly unfazed and not taking her eyes off her nails. “I think I’ll wait here.” She leveled Derek with a look that made it clear that there was no room for discussion.

Derek sighed and continued with his patients check up. Even though he was a werewolf, Erica intimidated him. She was scary when she was determined.

*** 

As soon as the patient was out of the office, Erica got to her feet and slapped Derek across the face. 

Hard.

“Ow!” Derek frowned, rubbing his face. Even though he was a werewolf, getting slapped across the face was still very unpleasant. Thankfully Erica wasn’t wearing any rings. “What was that for?”

“Because you’re an idiot!” Erica spat. “I told you to give him some space, and instead you blow up his phone more than you did when you were together.”

“I couldn’t stop thinking about him,” Derek whined. “I just wanted to hear from him.”

Erica rolled her eyes and raised her hand to slap him again, then sighed and dropped her hand to her waist. 

“It’s like kicking a puppy,” she sighed. “Under all the muscles and eyebrows you are the biggest softy I have ever seen. No wonder Stiles loves you so much.”

Derek shrugged, because what do you say to that?

“Anyway, since you didn’t listen to my first piece of advice, I’m here to give you some more.”

“I can’t not stop trying to talk to him,” Derek choked. “I won’t do that.” 

“I thought so,” Erica replied as she started to examine her nails again. “That’s why you’re going to write him a letter.” 

“What?” 

“I don’t think I stuttered once in that sentence,” Erica replied pointedly, catching her nails on the light. “You are going to write Stiles a letter.  I’d say to go and talk to him face to face, but he’s been acting weird lately and I don’t know how he’ll react if he sees you. And clearly you aren’t the greatest with your words, so I think a letter is just the safest option right now. Tell him everything you’ve been feeling for the past week; how sorry you are, how much you love him and Isaac, how you’re never going to lie to him again, the whole 9 yards.”

“How do I know he’s not going to rip it up?” Derek asked doubtfully. “He hasn’t responded to any of my text messages or answered my calls.”

“Because he’s saved all of your messages,” Erica said, locking eyes with Derek. “Every single one of them. I was at his house yesterday, and I looked through his phone when he wasn’t paying attention. Every single text message you’ve sent him is starred and favorited on his phone. He misses you. He just needs that extra push. And that’s where the letter comes in.” 

“But I’ve said everything I can think of in the text messages!” Derek cried. “How is sending it in a letter going to be any different?”

“I don’t know about you, but text messages aren’t the most romantic things in the world,” Erica smirked. “If Boyd fucked up and tried apologizing to me over a text message he would be sleeping on the couch.” 

“So what do I say in the letter?”

“I’m not going to write your apology for you,” Erica said. “Get creative. Write from the heart. If you do it right, you’ll know when you write it.”

Derek put his head in his hands and groaned. 

***

Derek didn’t write the letter for a couple of days. He had no idea where to start. He hadn’t been lying when he said that he poured out his heart in all the text messages. 

Of course in retrospect, texting Stiles his apologies probably wasn’t the smartest or most sincere thing to do. 

He could re-write and paraphrase all of his texts into a letter, but then he remembered Erica saying Stiles had favorited all of his texts, so that was a no go. He wanted to be sincere and not desperate.

Derek sighed and got up from where he was sitting. As he stood up and stretched he knocked his keys on the floor. Grumbling to himself he picked them up, and as he did he noticed Stiles’ apartment key on his key ring.

Derek caught his breath. Stiles had given this key to Derek because he trusted him, Derek didn’t deserve that key anymore. He wanted to earn it back. Suddenly he knew what he wanted to say in the letter.

He sat back down and started to write.

*** 

Honestly, pediatrics meetings were a waste of time. 

He just sat there with Dr. Graham and the board of directors and talked about success stories and how they could improve the hospital while not overspending. Derek couldn’t care less. Sure he loved being a pediatrician, but dealing with Dr. Graham on a daily basis was enough to drive anyone to drink. 

Usually in the meetings, Derek distracted himself by thinking of what Stiles was making for dinner. He had gotten pretty good at being able to predict it too. But it had been almost three since Derek had been over to Stiles’ for dinner. 

Almost 3 weeks had passed since the accident. And Derek missed his mate more and more every day.

That’s why he was overjoyed when he read Stiles’ text.

“I’m leaving,” Derek said, standing up and grabbing his coat.

“What the fuck do you think you’re doing Hale?” Dr. Graham snarled. “You just have blatant disrespect for these meetings. I swear you miss more meetings than you attend.” 

“Sorry,” Derek answered, clenching his fists and willing his eyes not to flash. “Something came up. Stiles needs me.”

*** 

Derek probably broke about three different traffic laws driving to Stiles’ apartment, but having his mate’s scent in his nose as he walked to the door was intoxicating.

“Easy,” Derek told himself. “You have to make this right.” 

He took a deep breath and knocked on the door.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> And I don't know if anyone else is sad that Erica isn't coming back for season 3, but I'm devastated. She was my favorite after Isaac. :(
> 
> Here's my [tumblr! ](http://www.superblanketman.tumblr.com/). I reblog stuff sometimes!


	16. Stiles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry it's a day late. I've been busy moving and dealing with stuff.  
> I also decided to add one more installment!  
> Yay!

Stiles barely opened the door before he catapulted himself into Derek. He wrapped his arms just under Derek’s armpits and buried his nose into the crook of Derek’s neck. He inhaled deeply, relishing that Derek was back and Derek was in his arms and Derek was _back._

“Stiles, I’m so sorry.”

“No talking,” Stiles mumbled into Derek’s shoulder. “No talking because I’m still mad at you. And if you keep apologizing then I’m not going to be mad at you anymore, and that’s bad because I _really_ should be mad at you right now.”

Stiles hugged Derek for a few more moments and eventually he felt Derek’s hands settle at the small of his back.

“I love you,” Derek whispered, breaking the silence.

“Damn it Derek. You can’t say things like that when I’m trying to be mad at you. You’re going to distract me.” 

“Is it working?” Derek asked, gently nudging Stiles’ head with his own. “Because I really fucking love you.”

“I’m still mad at you,” Stiles grinned, lifting his head off of Derek’s shoulder and locking eyes with the doctor. “But it’s working. And if you kiss me now, I’ll probably be less mad.” 

Derek smiled and pressed a tender kiss to Stiles’ lips.

“Better?”

“We’re getting there,” Stiles replied and leaned back into Derek’s shoulder. “And incidentally, I love you too.” 

***

Isaac wandered into the walkway and squealed with delight when he saw that Derek had finally returned. Stiles reluctantly relinquished his hold on Derek so Isaac could hug him.

But since it was pretty much Isaac and Erica’s fault that he and Derek were face to face, Stiles figured he could indulge his son some hugs. 

*** 

Stiles hadn’t had manicotti in almost 3 weeks. He was never going to do that to himself again. 

***

Later that night, after they had put Isaac to bed, Stiles and Derek were standing in the kitchen, each with a mug of coffee in their hands.

Stiles took a deep breath, because they still had yet to discuss the huge elephant in the room. Sure dinner had been pleasant, and there hadn’t been any problems watching _Finding Nemo_ with Isaac, but Stiles knew that things were still a little tense between him and Derek. They had successfully used Isaac as a buffer for most of the night, but now that he was asleep both Derek and Stiles were struggling to find the words.

He looked down at his coffee cup and frowned, he probably should replace this with vodka if he was going to get through this in one piece.

“I’m sorry,” Derek mumbled. Stiles looked up with a surprised expression on his face. He hadn’t expected Derek to be the one to break the uncomfortable silence. But there Derek was, looking down into his coffee mug like it was telling him exactly what to say.

“I never ever meant to hurt you. I swear. I just… It was just really hard, because I’ve liked you ever since I became Isaac’s pediatrician. And I was pretty sure you liked me too, but I only saw you once every three months and I just didn’t know how to ask you out. So I figured if I could see you more often I would be more relaxed and I could finally ask you out, and that’s how the whole heart murmur thing started. But I never would’ve done it if I had known it would turn out the way it did. I shouldn’t have done it in the first place.”

Stiles was speechless for a moment, because this was all very new information to him. When he first started bringing Isaac to Derek for his checkups, Stiles had been very attracted to Derek but he assumed that Derek was only nice to him because of Isaac. Then when he started to realize that Derek might have liked him back, Stiles may have played a little hard to get.

He thought that if Derek really wanted him, then he would have to work for it. Because Stiles was not going to have another Jenny on his hands. Stiles opened and closed his mouth a couple of times as the wave of realization that this whole heart murmur situation could’ve been avoided washed over him. 

He and Derek were both oblivious and needed to use their words. Derek could’ve just told Stiles that he liked him right off the bat, and Stiles could’ve done the same thing. Hindsight was 20/20, and looking back on the past 6 months was hysterical given these breaking new developments. Stiles was pretty sure that Danny had been more straightforward in asking Isaac out. 

Shown up by a five year old. That was embarrassing. 

Stiles started chuckling as the sheer stupidity of the entire ordeal. He caught the look of horror on Derek’s face and was quick to reassure him that nothing was wrong.

“First off, I’m still a little mad,” Stiles chuckled. “But that’s not why I’m laughing,” he added, noting the way Derek’s face relaxed slightly. “It’s just this whole thing could’ve been avoided from the beginning. I’ve thought you were gorgeous since the day first day I brought Isaac into the hospital.”

“Wha… You have?” 

“Yeah,” Stiles grinned, enjoying the way Derek’s face contorted with confusion. “If you would’ve asked me on the date that day, I would’ve said yes right then and there. I figured you were only nice to me because you liked Isaac.”

“Yeah, wait what?” 

Stiles smiled softly and walked over to where Derek was standing. He wrapped his arms around his neck and leaned up to kiss him gently on the nose.

“I’m saying that I liked you and you liked me. If either of us had said something, then we could’ve been dating a long time ago and we never would have had to worry about Isaac’s heart.” 

“God Stiles, I can’t imagine how you must have felt,” Derek said softly as he gripped Stiles’ hips firmly but not uncomfortably. “I never wanted to scare you like that. I just really wanted to see you both more often.” 

“Honestly I was scared because I blew it out of proportion,” Stiles admitted. “I’m still mad at you for telling me that he had a heart murmur in the first place, but you did tell me that it was probably harmless. I was the one who had 50 worst-case scenarios in my head. I over-reacted.”

“No you didn’t,” Derek corrected sharply. “You reacted like a father who was concerned about their child should. You didn’t do anything wrong. I did. I’m the one who lied. And I can never tell you how sorry I am for that.” 

Stiles pressed another kiss, this time to Derek’s chin. “I’m not going to be mad forever,” he said honestly. “Is it going to take a little while for me to fully trust you again? Probably. But Isaac was the one with the ‘heart murmur’ and he forgave you in about 3 seconds. I’m trying to take a page out of his book.”

“He’s 5 Stiles,” Derek chuckled. “He’s supposed to do that.” 

“You probably want me to forgive you quicker,” Stiles frowned good-naturedly. “I feel like that would be in your best interest.”

“I want to earn your trust again,” Derek replied seriously. “I don’t want to take any shortcuts.” 

“You’re doing fine,” Stiles answered. “I promise. I think it was the key that did it. That really hit it home for me. I was planning on calling a locksmith to be honest.”

Derek forced a smile, and Stiles pressed a soft kiss to his lips, earning himself a genuine smile. 

“I really want to earn it back,” Derek whispered. “I’d do anything for you to trust me again.”

“You will,” Stiles answered softly. “I’m not dumb enough to throw away the only guy other than my dad who values Isaac and I so much. Just give me some time ok? Give me a couple weeks and I’ll be yours again.” 

“Deal,” Derek smiled. 

It was the first time he kissed Stiles all night. 

*** 

The next 10 days were fantastic. Derek showed up every day after work and was everything Stiles could want in a boyfriend and then some. 

Derek helped around the house, he helped Isaac with his math homework, he ordered take-out when Stiles didn’t really feel like cooking, and he was doing everything right. He even played some version of _The Lion King_ with Isaac. (That ended with Derek nuzzling the fuck out of Stiles’ neck, but that was another story) Basically whatever Stiles needed, Derek did. Stiles could tell that Derek was really working hard to get back into Stiles’ good graces. 

Except it looked like Derek was actually _enjoying_ doing all of this work. Like he was happy just to be around Stiles and Isaac. It was comforting and sweet at the same time.

If Stiles had ever doubted Derek’s intentions before, he didn’t anymore.

*** 

“We need to talk,” Stiles said one night. The three of them were sitting on the floor, wrapped in blankets, watching a movie. It was becoming a custom for them on Saturday nights. Stiles didn’t want to get Isaac a babysitter and Derek seemed content to spend nights at Stiles’, cuddled together under the blankets.

Isaac had fallen asleep in Derek’s chest, leaving Derek and Stiles to finish watching _Atlantis_ by themselves.

“Um ok,” Derek replied, fidgeting uncomfortably. “What’s up?” 

Isaac murmured something in his sleep and Derek pressed a small kiss into his hair. 

“You gave me 10,000 dollars,” Stiles pointed out. 

“Was it not enough?” Derek panicked. “If you need more I can…” 

“No, no, it was more than enough,” Stiles cut him off. “It was too much too be honest. Isaac’s hospital bills were only like 2 grand, but I don’t feel comfortable letting you pay for it. So I want to give it all back.” 

“But how will you pay for his bills?” Derek asked doubtfully. “You took time off work.”

“I’ll work overtime for a couple of weeks,” Stiles answered. “It’s not that big of a deal. You shouldn’t have to spend money on me. Plus I have a little bit saved up for emergencies.” 

“Stiles if you give me back that money I will shred it,” Derek said. “I don’t need it. You need it. I gave it to you because I want to help. I want care about you. 

“But..”

“No buts,” Derek replied seriously. “If anything, think of it as a gift. I love you ok? Let me help you.”

“You’re making it real hard to be mad at you,” Stiles mumbled, resting his head on Derek’s shoulder. 

“Watch the movie,” Derek answered softly.

***

About 3 weeks after they had gotten back together, Stiles was pretty sure that he wasn’t mad at Derek anymore. There was absolutely no doubt in Stiles’ mind that Derek was in it for the long run. 

He was sweet, he was funny, he could cook, and he was about a 15 on the scale of one to gorgeous.

He was great with Isaac and he was perfect for Stiles.

Stiles wasn’t going to let Derek go.

Not a snowball’s chance. 

***

“So Isaac is graduating kindergarten next Saturday,” Stiles said. “Are you busy? Have any pressing pediatrics meetings to attend to?”

It was early Saturday night and Derek and Stiles were on their first ‘Isaac-free’ date since they had gotten back together. (Erica called and said they never broke up in the first place, but Stiles really wasn’t a stickler for details.) They were eating at the local diner, trying to keep it light and casual. Derek had offered to take Stiles into San Francisco for a fancy dinner and a show but Stiles declined, opting to stay close to home. 

He liked the more intimate feel of the café anyway.

“If you think I’m going to miss his graduation then you don’t know me that well at all,” Derek chuckled. “I wouldn’t miss it for the world, and he would probably kill me if I missed it too.”

“I don’t think he would kill you,” Stiles grinned. “But he might cry a lot.”

“Well we wouldn’t want that,” Derek smiled back. “What time is his graduation? I’ll be there.”

“It’s at the school at 6:30 next Saturday night. I figure you could come if you’re not busy and then the three of us could go and get ice cream after.” 

“That sounds like a good plan to me,” Derek smiled. “I’ll be there most definitely.”

“You’re the best.” 

*** 

As Stiles watched Isaac walk across the graduation stage, he couldn’t help but tear up. He was so proud that his little man was growing up so fast. It was the cutest thing in the world.

Isaac’s gown was a size too big, and he tripped over it multiple times as he walked across the stage, but still.

Isaac was growing up.

Stiles couldn’t have been more proud. 

*** 

Stiles let Isaac have a triple scoop sundae for dessert that night. 

He earned it. 

*** 

“Do you have any plans for summer vacation?” Derek asked. 

“Not really,” Stiles answered sheepishly. “The library doesn’t close during the summer, so I still have to work. Most of the time I just drop Isaac off at Danny’s, and every now and then I’ll take him to the beach or something.” 

“I want to take you guys camping,” Derek answered. “Can you get someone to cover for you?”

“I could call Erica,” Stiles frowned. “But I don’t mean to sound like ungrateful, but I really need the money this summer.”

“Stiles, I’ll take care of that,” Derek said gently, bumping Stiles lightly with his forehead. “I’ll take care of you. Do you trust me?” 

“Yeah,” Stiles said softly. “Yeah, I do.”


	17. Isaac

Isaac heard Dr. Derek come in the door. It was about time that his dad and Dr. Derek finally got straightened out. Isaac was getting tired getting of watching his dad mope around the house. And Isaac was starting to miss Dr. Derek too. 

It was getting to the point that Isaac started to watch the door, waiting for the moment when Dr. Derek would show up on his doorstep. 

***

Ok, his dad and Dr. Derek had been greeting each other for a little bit longer than Isaac would like. After all it was Ms. Erica’s and Isaac’s fault that Dr. Derek and his dad were getting back together. 

Isaac wanted some Dr. Derek hugs too. 

“Dr. Derek!!” Isaac called as he walked into the room. “I missed you!” 

“Hey pup,” Dr. Derek smiled, as he let go of Isaac’s dad and bent down to hug Isaac. “I missed you so much.”

“Are you staying for dinner?” Isaac asked, “Please say yes!” 

“I…” Derek paused and looked over at Isaac’s dad. 

“I’ll make manicotti,” he said as he walked to the kitchen. 

Isaac let out a whoop and hugged Dr. Derek again. He squealed with delight as Dr. Derek lifted him up and tossed him in the air. 

It was so nice that Dr. Derek was finally back. 

“Isaac look at me,” Dr. Derek said as he held Isaac in his hands. “I am so sorry. I never meant to scare you. I hope you’re not mad at me.” 

“It’s ok,” Isaac replied honestly. He wasn’t mad at Dr. Derek. As far as Isaac was concerned the past 6 months with his ‘heart murmur’ had been 6 of the best months of his life. Isaac wasn’t about to lose Dr. Derek because he didn’t actually have a heart murmur. “I’m not mad. I forgive you.” 

“Thanks pup,” Dr. Derek smiled. “I love you,” he said, nosing Isaac’s forehead. 

“I love you too,” Isaac replied. “I’m glad you’re back.” 

***

Isaac decided that he wanted to sit next to his dad at dinner.  
He knew that even though his dad and Dr. Derek were talking again, they still had a long way to go before things were back to normal. Ms. Erica warned him that it might take a couple of weeks before things went back to the way they were. 

But Ms. Erica hadn’t seen the way that his dad and Dr. Derek had been hugging when Dr. Derek had came to the door. 

So maybe things were looking up. 

Regardless, dinner was actually pretty nice. His dad and Dr. Derek were talking as if they hadn’t spent the last 2 weeks being super awkward and avoiding face-to-face contact. But here they were smiling and joking like nothing had happened. 

Dr. Derek ate a lot of food and Isaac tried to keep up again, but after Dr. Derek ate his 5th manicotti, Isaac had to tap out. 

“You’ve got a healthy appetite pup,” Dr. Derek smiled good-naturedly. “You must really like food.” 

“I want to grow up big and strong like you,” Isaac replied. 

“Keep eating this good food and you will,” Dr. Derek winked. 

Isaac’s dad snorted and rolled his eyes. 

***

“Can we watch a movie?” Isaac asked. He and Dr. Derek helped his dad with the dinner dishes and now they were sitting at the table with nothing to do. 

“Don’t you have school tomorrow?” his dad asked, raising an eyebrow. 

“But tomorrow is Friday!” Isaac whined. “And school gets out in five weeks! Ms. Allison has a countdown calendar on the blackboard!” 

“All you’re going to do is fall asleep,” his dad teased. “And then Dr. Derek and I have to put you to bed.” 

“I won’t fall asleep,” Isaac promised. “Please. I want to hang out with Dr. Derek.” 

“I should probably go home pup,” Dr. Derek cut in gently. “I have to go to work tomorrow morning.” 

“No please stay,” Isaac whined. “Please. I’ll be good, I promise.” 

“If you fall asleep before the movie ends then you’re getting oatmeal for breakfast tomorrow,” his dad said.

“Deal!” Isaac grinned. “Dibs on Dr. Derek!” 

***

Isaac had oatmeal for breakfast the next morning. 

But Isaac didn’t mind. 

Dr. Derek had been super comfortable last night, and his dad put raspberries in the oatmeal. 

It was so nice that his dad and Dr. Derek were finally back together. 

***

Dennis came back to school that day. 

He had been suspended for two weeks and he was clearly gunning to make up for lost time. 

“Hi Isaac.” 

“Hi Dennis.” 

“Do you want to be my partner for science today?” 

“Danny is already my partner.” 

“Ok, I’ll ask you later.” 

Isaac probably went through that conversation at least 5 times before they even had morning recess. It got to the point where Danny asked Ms. Allison to switch seats with Isaac because he could tell that Dennis was making his boyfriend so uncomfortable. 

Isaac was dating the best guy ever. 

 

***

At recess Danny and Isaac stayed inside to play with the class lizard. His name was Paul, and he was a blue-tongued skank or something. Sometimes Ms. Allison let Isaac feed him extra crickets if he was good. 

“I wish I had a blue tongue,” Danny smiled as he dangled a cricket in front of Paul. “It would be cool.” 

“I like my tongue the way it is,” Isaac grinned. “It’s a cool tongue.” 

“It sure is,” Dennis chimed in. 

“Dennis I thought you were playing Dragontails with everyone else,” Danny groaned.  
“Isaac and I are playing with Cameron by ourselves.” 

“I wanted to play with Isaac,” Dennis frowned. “And you can’t stop me.” 

“Play nice boys,” Ms. Allison said. “Dennis I don’t want to have to suspend you again. Be nice to Isaac and Danny.” 

“I’m trying to play with him,” Dennis grumbled. “But Dumbo Danny is being a butthead.” 

“Dennis. Timeout. Now.” 

Finally. 

***

Dr. Derek came back for dinner! And he managed to eat a bunch of BBQ chicken salad. Isaac would never get over how much food Dr. Derek could eat. It was like he was from another planet or something. 

***

Isaac was pretty sure that Dr. Derek and his dad were back together. For starters, Dr. Derek was coming around pretty much every day. He would come over after work and play with Isaac until dinnertime. Then after dinner he would help Isaac with his math homework. After homework time, Dr. Derek would cuddle with Isaac’s dad and Isaac until bedtime. 

Sometimes Dr. Derek slept over too. Isaac liked those days the best because his dad would always make something nice for breakfast. And seeing Dr. Derek first thing in the morning was a plus too. 

Sleepy, early morning Dr. Derek kisses were his favorite. And sometimes Dr. Derek would share his breakfast with Isaac. 

On weekends Dr. Derek would come over in the mornings and hang out with Isaac in his dad all day. It was pretty fun. His dad and Dr. Derek were always smiling when they were together, and there were gentle kisses and hugs here and there. 

Isaac was just so glad that they were back together. He liked it when they all were smiling. 

***

Dr. Derek was freakishly strong. Isaac knew that Dr. Derek was letting him when they wrestled, but there was no way that Dr. Derek could be that strong. 

Maybe Isaac should start doing push ups in the morning. 

Did Danny like big muscles? He would have to ask him tomorrow. 

***

Isaac spent the night at Danny’s on Saturday while his dad and Dr. Derek went on a date. Normally Isaac would be grumpy that his dad was hogging Dr. Derek, but Isaac hadn’t spent that much time with Danny lately either. 

“Do you want to play Candy Land?” Danny asked. 

“Would you like me better if I had big muscles?” Isaac blurted. He clapped his hands over his mouth and his eyes widened in horror. 

“What?” 

“My dad says that his favorite part about Dr. Derek is his muscles, so I thought that maybe you would like me more if I had big muscles too,” Isaac mumbled, tracing a pattern in the carpet with his foot. 

“I like you just fine Isaac,” Danny smiled. He took Isaac’s hand and squeezed it softly. “You’re my boyfriend silly.” 

“Promise?” Isaac whispered.

“Promise.” Danny replied. He kissed Isaac on the cheek and smiled softly. “I love you no matter what.” 

“Ok, I’ll only play Candy Land if you let me be the blue piece.” 

“Deal.”

***  
Isaac was so happy that he and Danny were graduating kindergarten. They had endured a rough year, but they were finally about to get their diplomas so they could go into first grade. 

“Isaac Stilinksi!”

Isaac stood up and bounded across the stage. He saw Ms. Erica and her boyfriend Mr. Boyd. They both smiled and waved at him. Then he saw his dad and Dr. Derek standing next to them and they were clapping too. His dad was even wiping some tears out of his eyes. Mr. Jackson and Ms. Lydia were there too, and Mr. Jackson even gave him a thumbs up. 

Isaac took his diploma from Ms. Allison’s hands and hugged her knees. Then he walked back to his seat to wait for Danny’s name to be called. Danny was one of the last kids in class to get called because his last name started with ‘W’, but even though Danny was second to last on the roll sheet, he was first in Isaac’s book. 

“Danny Whittemore-Martin!” 

Isaac stood up and clapped as Danny walked across the stage. He was so proud of his boyfriend. 

Danny was the best. 

***

“Dr. Derek this is Danny,” Isaac said, as he dragged his boyfriend to meet Dr. Derek. “He’s my boyfriend.” 

“Nice to meet you Danny,” Dr. Derek smiled, shaking Isaac’s hand. “Isaac talks about you a lot.” 

“He talks about you a lot too,” Danny replied. “Can I go get some punch?”

***

Isaac’s dad let him make the biggest sundae for dessert that night. They were sitting in Isaac’s favorite diner, and Isaac had a mountain of ice cream, bananas, chocolate sauce, sprinkles, a brownie, cherries and whipped cream sitting in front of him. 

“Are you going to be able to finish that pup?” Dr. Derek grinned. He was sitting with a modest chocolate milkshake, which was weird because Isaac had seen him inhale huge amounts of waffles and manicotti, so he knew that he was just being modest. “I don’t want you to get a tummy ache.” 

“I can!” Isaac frowned. “I’m waiting for the ice cream to melt, because then it makes the brownie taste better.” 

“Right,” Dr. Derek smirked. “If you like mushy brownie.” 

Isaac stuck his tongue out at Dr. Derek and dug into his sundae. The ice cream had melted just enough so that the brownie was delicious. Dr. Derek didn’t know what he was talking about. 

“Dr. Derek are you going to keep kissing my dad?” Isaac asked. He knew there was a good chance that there was ice cream and brownie bits all over his face, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. He had been so happy that his dad and Dr. Derek were kissing like that in public again. He wanted to make sure that it kept happening. 

“I think so pup,” Dr. Derek smiled. He reached over the booth and wiped some of the ice cream off Isaac’s face. “I might come to live with you too.” 

“Really?” Isaac squealed. Dr. Derek pretty much lived with them anyway, he was there more often than not, but it would totally rock if Dr. Derek actually moved in with him. It would be like a never-ending slumber party. “That would be the best!” 

“We’re still working on the details buddy, but if everything works out ok, Dr. Derek will move in by the time you start first grade.” 

“Awesome!” Isaac cheered, accidentally flipping over the remains his sundae and covering his shirt with melted ice cream and brownie bits. 

Dr. Derek rolled his eyes fondly and started cleaning Isaac up. “What have I gotten myself into?” 

“Don’t worry Dr. Derek,” Isaac grinned. “It’s going to be awesome. We’re going to be like one big happy family!” 

“I’d like that pup,” Dr. Derek smiled as he kissed Isaac’s curls. “I’d like that a lot.” 

***

Isaac had never been camping before. 

He was super excited. Maybe Dr. Derek would let him make s’mores!


	18. Derek

As Derek waited outside Stiles’ apartment, he rehearsed everything he was going to say to Stiles. He was going to start by apologizing, and then he would tell Stiles how much he loved him. He would promise Stiles that he would never lie or hurt him again. 

He just needed Stiles to know that how much he meant to Derek. 

Of course all those plans went out the window when Stiles launched himself into Derek’s body before Derek could say anything.

Derek didn’t really know what to do. He had been expecting Stiles to be really angry and yell at Derek for a few minutes before giving Derek a chance to speak. But he hadn’t expected Stiles to go straight for the hug. 

Derek had to admit, having his mate back in his arms was a great feeling, and he never wanted to let Stiles go.

“Stiles, I’m so sorry,” Derek whispered. Even though he apologized countless times, he wanted Stiles to hear it from him face to face. Derek had apologized over text messages, over voice mails and even through a letter, but he had never apologized to Stiles in person.

He figured now would be a great place to start.

“No talking,” Stiles replied, his voice muffled by Derek’s shoulder. “No talking because I’m still mad at you and if you keep apologizing then I’m not going to be mad at you anymore, and that’s bad because I _really_ should be mad at you right now.” 

Derek could live with that. He really could. At least Stiles was _talking_ to him again. He had Stiles in his arms, and it looked like Stiles had put a lot of it behind him. Derek was so happy that his mate was back. Hopefully everything would turn out ok. 

“I love you,” Derek whispered, because it seemed like the appropriate thing to say. 

“Damn it Derek. You can’t say things like that when I’m trying to be mad at you. You’re going to distract me.”

Derek flinched at the initial words, but quickly realized that there was very little anger behind them. Obviously Stiles was still angry, but it was clear that he was making an effort to give Derek another chance. 

Derek wasn’t going to let that pass him by. 

“Is it working?” he asked, gently nudging Stiles’ head with his own. “Because I really fucking love you.”

“I’m still mad at you, but it’s working. And if you kiss me now, I’ll probably be less mad.” 

And in that moment, Derek was sure that they were going to work things out.

*** 

Derek absolutely did not tear up when he was hugging Isaac. 

He definitely did not tear up when Isaac told him he was glad he was back.

***

“You’re falling asleep pup,” Derek whispered. “This is the best part.”

Derek had comem to terms with the fact that he was Isaac's favorite pillow a long time ago. Whenever Isaac watched a movie he burrowed into Derek's chest and stayed there until he fell asleep or until the movie ended. 

99 times out of 100 he fell asleep.

"You're more comfortable than the blankets," Isaac murmured. His voice was muffled from where he was nuzzled into Derek's chest. "I want you and dad to get married so you can stay forever." 

“I’d like that pup,” Derek whispered, pressing a kiss to the dozing boy’s head. Derek looked over at Stiles and smiled softly. “I’d like that a lot.” 

Stiles blushed and looked away, but he scooted closer to Derek. Derek wrapped one of his arms around Stiles’ shoulders and Stiles leaned into his touch. Derek pressed a small kiss to the side of Stiles’ head and Stiles blushed even more.

“I haven’t even put out yet,” Stiles muttered playfully. “I could be awful in bed.”

“And I wouldn’t care,” Derek answered, tightening his grip on Stiles. “We’d just have to practice until you were good.” 

“We’re not talking about this in front of Isaac,” Stiles blushed. 

“About what?” Isaac asked, suddenly alert.

“Nothing pup,” Derek said. “I was just telling your dad how much I loved him and I would love to marry him.”

“He already knows that,” Isaac replied, repositioning himself into Derek’s chest. “He even says how much he loves you in his sleep.” 

Stiles turned a beet red and bit his lip, in a gesture that was one of the most adorable things that Derek had ever seen.

“Oh really?” Derek asked, quirking an eyebrow. 

“Yeah, the other day he said he loved you and that he missed you while he was sleeping.”

“Kids,” Stiles muttered. “Gotta love ‘em.” 

“I love you,” Derek grinned.

“Watch the movie,” Stiles shot back. But he leaned back into Derek and kissed the underside of his jaw.

***

“I’m saying that I liked you and you liked me. If either of us had said something, then we could’ve been dating a long time ago and we never would have had to worry about Isaac’s heart.”

Story of Derek’s life. 

***

“I got my mate back Mom,” Derek whispered to the gravestone. “And I’m never letting him go again.” 

***

Derek had spent the last full moon mauling Stiles’ neck in front of a movie theatre. His instincts and hormones were heightened during the full moon, and he probably would’ve wanted to die if this full moon had happened during the time that he and Stiles weren’t speaking.

Thankfully it hadn’t and Derek and his wolf were spending it at Stiles’ apartment. They had just got done eating dinner (Stiles was really good at making steaks) and now they were rolling around on the floor. 

Or more accurately, Derek and Isaac were rolling around on the floor. Isaac was pretending that he was Mufasa and Derek was Scar (because he was all growly), and Isaac had to defend Simba (Stiles) from Derek. Derek enjoyed being ‘overpowered’ by Isaac’s small 5-year-old frame.

The physical contact was really serving as a great outlet for all of Derek’s moonlit inhibitions. He was subtly scenting his mates’ pup all over, and the little boy was enjoying every second of it.

“I beat you Dr. Derek!” Isaac called triumphantly, as he laid on Derek’s chest. “You can never come to Pride Rock again!” 

Isaac let what could only be described as a victory roar. It was the cutest little thing too. He would have to work on it if he wanted to be a werewolf though. 

“I’ll get you next time Mufasa,” Derek grinned. “Simba will be mine one day.” He looked over his shoulder at Stiles, who turned away. 

Not before Derek saw the blush that was creeping up his face.

“Nooo,” Isaac grinned. “Simba is going to be King one day!” 

“Not if I can do anything about it!” Derek roared and flipped Isaac over and started tickling him until he begged for mercy.

“You cheat Dr. Derek."

“All’s fair in love and war,” Derek grinned, as he pressed his face into Isaac’s neck. “You’ll just have to try harder next time.”

“You’re prickly,” Isaac giggled. 

***

As soon as Isaac was in bed, Derek shoved Stiles against the wall and _attacked_ his neck. 

Scenting his mate’s pup was one thing, and as satisfying as it was, Stiles’ scent was driving Derek _crazy._ The natural sweetness of Stiles’ regular scent, mixed with the slight tanginess of his arousal and Derek’s own full moon heightened hormones equaled Derek’s face nuzzling Stiles’ neck.

“You and my neck,” Stiles shuddered. “I swear it’s like you’re a vampire.”

Derek bristled at the fact that Stiles would even think that he was a vampire. He didn't sparkle.

“Not a vampire,” he growled. “Just really fucking love you.”

“Still not putting out yet,” Stiles whispered, threading his fingers through Derek’s hair. “Not quite.”

“Don’t care,” Derek replied, nipping at Stiles’ collarbone. “You’re mine.”

“I’m strangely ok with that,” Stiles grinned. 

Stiles let Derek caress his neck for another 30 minutes before he kissed Derek goodnight. 

“I love you,” he whispered softly, his breath ghosting over Derek’s lips. “And I’m really glad you’re back."

“Me too."

*** 

Erica cornered him before the graduation ceremony.

“I don’t need to remind you that if you hurt him again, I will castrate you.”

“I promise I won’t hurt him again,” Derek smiled. 

“Good man,” she grinned. “Now let’s go watch Isaac walk.”

*** 

Isaac graduated kindergarten with gold stars across the board. 

“Looks like your math tutoring really paid off,” Stiles grinned.

“He’s a smart kid,” Derek agreed. “He’s gonna go far in life.”

“Dr. Derek, look at my diploma!” Isaac called as he ran over to them. “I got gold stars in everything!”

“Congratulations Isaac,” Derek smiled, lifting Isaac up and tossing him in the air. “I’m so proud of you.” 

“Can I go play with Danny now?” Isaac asked, when Derek put him down. “We want some cookies.” 

“Sure pup, have fun.” 

Derek watched as Isaac bounded over to the cookie table and took Danny’s hand. 

“They grow up so fast,” Stiles whispered, lacing his fingers with Derek’s. “Before we know it, we’re going to be sending him off to college, and watching him get married, and he’s not going to be my little man anymore.”

“We?” Derek asked.

“Yeah,” his mate said softly, turning to face Derek. “I love you Derek Hale. I love you so much. Barring those three hellish weeks when we weren’t talking, you’ve been the best boyfriend I could ask for. I feel safe around you and so does Isaac. I know it’s only been 6 months, but I can’t imagine my life without you. I want you to be a part of it forever.” 

“That sounds like a proposal,” Derek grinned, kissing Stiles on the nose. 

“I just want you to be a part of our lives.”

Hearing his mate say that he wanted Derek to be a permanent fixture in his life was overwhelming, and Derek blinked a couple times to prevent his eyes from flashing. This was everything he wanted; Stiles, Isaac and Derek, one big happy family.

“I would love to,” Derek smiled. He took Stiles’ face in his hands and kissed him passionately.

“Ewwww,” Isaac giggled over from the cookie table.

*** 

Stiles made Derek order a milkshake.

“If you order a brownie sundae, then Isaac try and order 3 sundaes because he’s convinced that the only reason you’re big and strong is because you eat a lot. And I am not dealing with ice cream tummy aches at three in the morning.” 

“But I wanted a brownie too,” Derek whined. 

“Suck it up,” Stiles grinned. “If you’re good, we can spoon tonight.” 

“We were gonna spoon anyway,” Derek snorted.

“Not if you order a sundae we won’t.”

Derek quickly weighed his options. On one hand it would be hysterical to watch Isaac stuff his face with brownie goodness and Derek really wanted his own sundae, but spooning with Stiles was rapidly approaching the top of Derek’s _Favorite Things to do with My Mate_ list. 

“Looks like I’m ordering a milkshake.”

“Good man,” Stiles smiled, kissing Derek on the nose. “I’ll make sure I’m extra cuddly tonight.” 

***

Stiles was indeed extra cuddly that night.

***

As Derek laid next to Stiles in bed that night, he realized that Stiles still didn’t know that he was a werewolf. As much as Derek wanted to pack up and move in with Stiles and Isaac immediately, he knew that he couldn’t do that without letting them know that every month he transformed into a wolf.

Fuck, Derek thought.

He decided that the easiest way to tell them was just to be straightforward. He had learned the hard way that going the round about way wasn’t going to be a good idea. He was just going to tell them both and deal with the fall out afterwards. 

Derek reasoned that it would probably be best if he transformed where people couldn’t see, so that night he made reservations for a campsite the next weekend. Stiles and Isaac would know that he was a werewolf in 7 days. 

He hoped that they would still want to be with him after that.

Derek kissed the nape of Stiles neck and rolled over to fall asleep. 

*** 

“Do you trust me?” 

“Yeah,” Stiles answered softly. “Yeah, I do.”

That was all Derek needed to hear. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm on [tumblr!](http://superblanketman.tumblr.com)
> 
> Come and say hi!


	19. Stiles

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the late update! 
> 
> I just moved into my new house and I had to put all my new furniture together. I didn't know that IKEA was do it yourself. 
> 
> But I'm back and this fic is finished!!

Stiles was actually pretty excited about camping. He hadn’t been camping since his mom was alive but he had always enjoyed the great outdoors. He had also always wanted to take Isaac camping, but he was either short on money or just couldn’t find the time to go camping because he was working.

So he was really excited that Derek was taking them camping. And apparently the campgrounds they were going to were very exclusive. Like you had to be a member or make reservations like 18 months in advance. 

“What should I pack?” Stiles asked. “I haven’t been camping in forever, and if this campsite is as nice as it looks on the website, I don’t want Isaac and I to be out of the loop.”

It was two nights before the trip and they were relaxing at Stiles’ apartment. Isaac was once again burrowed into Derek’s chest, having fallen asleep during The Land Before Time IV, and Derek was smiling down at him like Isaac was his entire world.

It just melted Stiles’ heart. 

“What?” Derek asked quietly. “Sorry, I wasn’t paying attention.” 

“I can see that,” Stiles grinned. “I asked you what should we pack for the trip? I know all the basics like bug spray and swim trunks, but is there anything in particular?”

“Oh, nothing special. The only thing that’s special about the campsite is that it’s really old and prestigious. Other than that it’s just a pretty basic campsite.” 

“Well thanks for giving it such stellar reviews,” Stiles laughed quietly. “I guess we’ll just have to play it by ear.”

“It’s still gonna be fun though,” Derek said. “I wouldn’t take you someplace boring.”

“I know you wouldn’t,” Stiles replied, winking at his boyfriend. “I just like giving you a hard time.” 

“You love me.” 

“You are correct in that assessment,” Stiles smiled. “You wanna put him to bed for me?” 

“Yeah,” Derek smiled, kissing Isaac on the head. “I can do that.”

***

Stiles strapped Isaac into his car seat and slid into the drivers seat next to Derek. He really wanted to ride up to the campsite in Derek’s Camaro, but Derek had been adamant about taking the Jeep. 

“It’s going to be a rough ride,” Derek said. “And there are a bunch of potholes and twists and turns in the road. Your jeep is just the safer option.” 

“You just don’t want to get dust on your Camaro.” Stiles shot back.

“That and there’s not enough room in my back seat for Isaac’s car seat,” Derek smirked. “And I’m not going to be the one to break the news to Isaac that he’s not allowed on the camping trip.” 

“You fight dirty.” 

“Love you,” Derek grinned, nipping at Stiles’ earlobe.

*** 

After dating Derek for the better part of 7 months, Stiles liked to think that he was pretty good at noticing the subtle changes in his boyfriend’s mannerisms. When Derek was happy, he had a cute little half smile that played across his lips. When Derek was annoyed, he did a cute little huff through his nostrils. When Derek was feeling playful, he tossed Isaac in the air. When Derek wanted a little extra slice of Stiles, he shoved his face into Stiles’ neck. 

So when Derek stepped out of the jeep, clenched his jaw and squared his shoulders, Stiles knew that his boyfriend was nervous and on guard" 

“Derek?” Stiles asked gently. “Is everything ok?”

“Yeah,” Derek gritted out, gripping Stiles’ hand tighter than usual. “I’m fine. Want to set up camp?” 

*** 

While Derek turned into Super Boy Scout, sorting everything out, Stiles watched as Isaac ran around the campgrounds. Derek saying that it was a pretty basic campsite had been the understatement of the century.

The campsite was beautiful. There were huge green trees surrounding the grounds, and there were squirrels and rabbits darting in and out of them. Stiles was pretty sure he saw a deer or two as well. He could hear the sound of a rushing river in the distance, and there were signs for hiking trails at the far end of the grounds.

And if that wasn’t enough, a large yellow butterfly landed right on Stiles’ shirt. 

“Hey dad! That’s a tiger swallowtail,” Isaac called, from where he was perched on a large rock. “We learned about them in class. There are a lot over here, come look!”

Stiles walked over to where Isaac was and looked in the direction his son was pointing. True to his word, there were a lot of butterflies congregated on several bushes. 

“They’re really pretty,” Isaac said.

“They’re beautiful,” Stiles agreed. “Are you excited for this weekend buddy?” 

“Yeah,” Isaac replied. “Dr. Derek said that it was going to be a lot of fun. And Dr. Derek always keeps his promises.” 

***

Stiles had tasted Derek’s grilling before. Derek’s grilling was very good, and Stiles had been looking forward to tasting Derek’s grilling during the entire car ride. So when Derek handed Stiles a pack of hamburgers, Stiles was a little flustered.

“What am I supposed to do with these?” 

“I… I like it when you cook,” Derek blushed. “I don’t know what it is, but I like it when you cook for me.” 

“You are adorable,” Stiles smiled, taking the hamburgers from Derek’s hands and kissing him lightly on the mouth. “Is that why you came around all the time? I was just a free meal and a warm body to curl up to at night? Is that what this was all about?”

“I like cuddling with Isaac too, and I like the movies that we watch.” Derek grinned. “But yeah, that’s pretty much it." 

“How do you want your burger?”

*** 

Stiles got into trouble right after lunch. 

He was cleaning the grill rack, but he stupidly didn’t take it out of the grill, so as he was scrubbing it, he knocked a mound of coals and ash onto him. 

“Crap,” he groaned, looking at Derek and Isaac who were both trying very hard not to laugh. “I’m gonna go take a shower.”

“You look like a chimney sweep from Mary Poppins,” Derek snickered, and Isaac howled with laughter. 

“Well I guess neither of you are getting cupcakes when I get back,” Stiles shot back. 

“Cupcakes? Where?”

“I hid them,” Stiles smirked. “And depending on how nice you are when I get out of my shower will determine if you get them or not.” He waved at the both of them and made his way over to the showers.

The trouble started as soon as Stiles stepped out.  

"Hi, I'm Thomas."

"Hi," Stiles replied. "Uh, I'm Stiles." 

Thomas nodded and looked Stiles up and down. Stiles suddenly felt like a piece of meat, and in a good way. Thomas had a predatory look in his eye. And it was making Stiles a more than a little uncomfortable. Thankfully he had brought a change of clothes to the shower. He looked over his shoulder, silently praying that Derek would realize that something was wrong.

"Stiles is an interesting name," Thomas replied, eyes gleaming.

"It's a nickname, my real name is ridiculously hard to pronounce, so I just stick to Stiles."

"Oh cool," Thomas said, and he actually licked his lips. Which wasn't creepy at all. "So I couldn't help but notice that you didn't really know what you were doing with the whole camping thing. If you wanted to come back to my tent, I could show you a couple things about pitching tents." He raised his eyebrows suggestively, and that's when Stiles had enough. 

"Ok, look, Thomas was it?"

Thomas nodded and ran his tongue across his teeth.

"If you spent so much time noticing me today, you would have noticed that I have a smoking hot boyfriend, and have no intention of cheating on him. Especially not with people who use camping pick up lines. Seriously, that was one of the worst things I have ever heard." 

"You haven't even ridden the Thomas Train," Thomas smirked. "I can get you to the station and back before your man even misses you. And once you ride on the Thomas Express, you'll come back."

"I actually think I'm going to throw up in my mouth," Stiles said, gagging slightly. "That's actually disgusting. And for the record, you never want to brag about being quick."

"So just so we're clear, you don't want a ticket?" 

"No, and stop with the train puns. That's disgusting."

"You don't know what you're missing," Thomas smirked.

"He said he wasn't interested," a voice spoke up from behind Stiles. "And if you keep harassing my boyfriend, I can't promise what will happen to that face of yours." 

Stiles felt Derek's arms wrap around his waist, and relaxed as Derek pulled him closer into his body. Derek was actually his knight in shining armor. 

He didn't need the Thomas Express, because he was already a frequent flier of AirDerek.

Who was he kidding he was a VIP. 

Derek tightened his grip on Stiles' waist, and rested his chin on Stiles' shoulder, drawing him closer still. It was like he was daring Thomas to make a move. 

"I know when I'm beat," Thomas grinned. "No need to get violent. Stiles, the offer still stands if you ever want to take a ride with me, or if you need help pitching a tent."

"Thanks, but I'll pass," Stiles snorted. He narrowed his eyes as Thomas turned and walked away. Once he was satisfied that he was gone and not coming back, Stiles relaxed into Derek's arms. 

"What was that all about?" Derek asked gently. However, even though his voice was soft, Stiles could hear the annoyance in it. Derek was incredibly possessive of Stiles. Once he had met him at the library and actually growled when Erica kissed him on the cheek. Of course Erica was unfazed, but Stiles could appreciate the sentiment. He loved the fact that Derek valued him. 

"I honestly have no idea," Stiles answered. "He kept hitting on me, and it was pretty annoying. He asked me if I wanted to take a ride on the 'Thomas Express'. Hey, easy big guy," he grinned, feeling Derek tense up again. "I shut him down faster than you shut Dr. Graham down when he schedules you for pediatrics meetings." 

That earned him a chuckle from Derek, and a quick kiss on the cheek" 

"Thanks for the save though," Stiles continued. "Where's Isaac?"

"I asked him to wait in the tent," Derek said. "I didn't want him to see me beating the shit out of that guy." 

"So romantic," Stiles grinned.

"I don't like people hitting on you," Derek growled slightly. And wow, that sounded really good. Like Derek could probably do voiceovers for wolves in TV shows or movies. "You're mine."

"That's specifically possessive," Stiles smirked. "But isn't this the part where your cheek and or face attacks my neck?" 

"It can if you want it to be," Derek replied breathily, biting gently at the base of Stiles’ neck.

"Probably shouldn't happen in public," Stiles shuddered. Derek had just nipped an especially sensitive spot on Stiles' neck. The hickey had literally just faded. "But I'm not complaining about this possessive side of you. It's pretty great actually."

"You're pretty great," Derek murmured softly.

"Come on Romeo," Stiles grinned. "Let's get back to the tent before Isaac gets too worried. 

"Love you," Derek murmured.

"Love you too."

“Does this mean that we get cupcakes now?” 

*** 

After dinner, when it got dark, Derek led Isaac and Stiles down a path that started at the edge of the campsite. Stiles was a little wary about heading into the pitch black woods, but Derek assured him that he had nothing to worry about. 

“Are we going on a midnight hike Dr. Derek?” Isaac asked. He was riding on Derek’s shoulders so Derek could hold Stiles’ hand.

“Not quite pup,” Derek smiled. “The trails are back the other way. But I think you’ll like what I’m about to show you.”

The three of them walked for another couple of minutes. As Isaac was peppering Derek with little questions about the ‘surprise’ Stiles was softly stroking the back of Derek’s hand with his thumb. Soon they arrived at a clearing that was filled with dancing little lights.

“We’re here,” Derek said softly. “Here Isaac, take one of these.”

Derek handed Isaac a jar, and laughed at Isaac’s confused look.

“They’re fireflies bud, you can catch them in a jar and take them home with you if you want.”

“Will they die?” Isaac asked innocently. “How will they breathe?”

“Don’t worry pup,” Derek smiled, ruffling Isaac’s hair. He bent down and grabbed some aluminum foil out of his backpack. “We can put this over the top and poke holes in it so they can breathe.” 

“Ok,” Isaac grinned. Once he was convinced that he wasn’t going to turn into the firefly murderer, he took off running.

“Hey,” Derek said softly, turning to Stiles. “Are you ok? Having fun?”

“You’re kind of perfect,” Stiles smiled, kissing Derek on the mouth. “It’s like you’re made for us.”

“I’d like to think so,” Derek said back. “I love you Stiles.”

“I love you too Derek.”

“Dr. Derek I got some!” Isaac called. “Now what do I do?” 

Derek laughed as he ran over to help Isaac, who was bouncing around the clearing with his hands over his jar. 

Stiles sat down and watched his boyfriend and son laugh and play in the moonlight. Derek was the perfect addition to their family. 

*** 

That night Isaac cuddled between Derek and Stiles and promptly fell asleep. It had been a long day for him, and he tuckered out pretty quick. Isaac was snoring softly and had his head nuzzled into Derek’s armpit and the rest of his body was contorted onto Stiles, and he was loosely holding Stiles’ hand. He was probably going to wake up with a stiff neck. 

“He’s snoring,” Stiles whispered. “That’s so cute.” 

“You snore too,” Derek pointed out. “Cute snoring must run in the family.” 

“I do not snore,” Stiles said softly. 

“I’ve slept next to you for a while,” Derek smiled. “You snore sometimes." 

Stiles huffed in annoyance. “Whatever.”

“Hey,” Derek smiled, rolling over to look at Stiles. He pulled Isaac onto his chest, because he knew that it was Isaac’s favorite place to sleep. “Thanks for giving me a second chance.” 

“What are you talking about?” 

“You,” Derek smiled softly. “You took me back, after the heart murmur fiasco. You didn’t have to give me another chance. But you did.”

“We’ve been over this,” Stiles replied, raising an eyebrow. “I was mad, you apologized, I forgave you, we’re back together. It’s water under the bridge.” 

“But I don’t understand. I did something unforgivable. I hurt you, and I never wanted to do that.” 

“This is the last time I’m telling you this,” Stiles said, making sure that there was no room for argument in his tone. “At the end of the day, I decided that my life was better with you than without you. I wasn’t going to torment myself, you or Isaac, just because I couldn’t deal with a lie.” 

“But…” 

“Granted it was a pretty significant lie,” Stiles continued, completely ignoring Derek’s interruption. “”But I still love you regardless, and at the end of the day as long as I love you and you love me, and there’s trust, I think that’s all we need.”

“You trust me?”

“With my life,” Stiles answered.

“You’re too good for me Stiles,” Derek whispered, rolling over to face Stiles. He still cradled Isaac in his chest, and Isaac murmured as he was moved in his sleep. “I feel really lucky to have you.”

“What can I say, I’m a catch,” Stiles grinned. “But I feel lucky to have you too. I’ve never met someone who cares so much for me and Isaac. But you do. And that’s probably my favorite thing about you.” 

Wanting to take the initiative, Stiles smiled softly and pressed a gentle kiss to Derek’s lips. “You’re the best Derek,” he whispered.

Even though Isaac was between them, Stiles had never felt closer to Derek. 

*** 

Stiles was never taking Isaac to the river again. The kid was dastardly. 

*** 

The nature hike was absolutely beautiful. Derek was wearing some cargo hiking shorts that did absolutely illegal things to his ass. Stiles didn’t know what to focus on more, the beautiful scenery or Derek’s ass.

He decided on the trees. He could look at Derek’s ass anytime he wanted. 

Isaac was walking a couple steps ahead of them. Derek kept trying to get Isaac to hold his hand, but clearly Isaac wasn’t having any of it. Eventually Derek came up with the brilliant idea of letting Isaac ride on his shoulders so he could get a better view of the dragonflies and deer.

"Dad, look I'm king of the mountain!" Isaac smiled from his perch on Derek's shoulders.

Derek snorted and rolled his eyes fondly, but Stiles could still see that he was a little on edge. It made Stiles a little nervous too. Usually Derek was the epitome of tall, dark and handsome with a splash of confidence, but seeing his eyes dart back and forth and the concerned expression on his face, was really messing with Stiles.

“Is everything ok?” he asked, taking Derek’s hand and squeezing it gently for reassurance. 

“Yeah,” Derek replied. “It’s fine. I… It’s fine.” 

“You seem uncomfortable,” Stiles frowned. “We can go back if you want. You’ve seen one part of a hiking trail, you’ve seen the whole thing.” 

“No, you… you wanted hike the whole thing,” Derek swallowed nervously. “I’m fine. It’s fine.” 

“Ok,” Stiles said doubtfully. 

“It’ll be fine,” Derek said. 

Stiles wasn’t sure who Derek was trying to convince more; himself or Stiles. 

*** 

Stiles ran into the clearing, and stopped dead at what he saw.

Isaac was standing across the clearing from some humanoid thing. It looked like a human, it was standing up on two legs and it had two arms. There were also some scary looking claws were the fingernails should've been, but that wasn't the scariest thing about it. 

It's face. 

Instead of a human looking face, this thing had a snout instead of a nose. And the forehead was really pronounced. Not quite Vulcan ridges, but definitely not human. There was also grayish-silver hair sprouting in unnatural places, like stiles had heard of extreme sideburns, but this was actually ridiculous.

But the thing that creeped Stiles out the most were this thing’s eyes. They were unnaturally gold, and they were locked on Isaac, and not in a good way. 

"Isaac, come here bud," Stiles choked out.

Isaac didn’t move and Stiles started to panic.

He tried to remember everything he knew about encountering wild animals. Make loud noises, make yourself appear bigger, back away slowly. Don't break eye contact, all that good stuff. 

Stiles wasn't sure all that was going to work, because this thing wasn't exactly an animal, but it was all he had to go on. 

Of course, all that went out the window when Derek let out an honest to god roar, and tackled the creature before Stiles even realized what was happening.

Stiles scrambled to get Isaac to safety, and once both of them were out of the battle zone, Stiles' mouth dropped at what he saw. 

In the place of humanoid creature and Derek, was a pile of tattered clothes and two wolves. Like actual wolves, the kind that howled and everything.

Stiles figured that Derek was the black wolf, and the grey wolf was what had cornered Isaac in the clearing. Derek was roaring ferociously, and tearing into the gray wolf.

His claws were extended, and his teeth were stained with blood and bits of gray fur. His ears were flat against his skull in a threatening position, and every time the gray wolf made a lunge at Stiles and Isaac, Derek would tackle him right out of the air.

The battle between Derek and the other wolf raged on for about 20 minutes. Stiles desperately wanted to get himself and Isaac to safety, but at the same time he couldn't tear his eyes away from Derek.

Derek, who was literally fighting for their lives.

The other wolf was beginning to tire from Derek's relentless onslaught. His gray fur was matted with blood, whereas the only reason Derek's fur was matted was because he threw his entire body into his tackles, so his fur was more dirty than anything.

Finally, Derek was able to flip the other wolf into his back, he roared loudly and the other wolf whined and bared its neck, in what Stiles assumed was submission.

Stiles closed his eyes, waiting for the inevitable moment when Derek would kill the other wolf by ripping it's throat out with his teeth. 

“Derek don’t.” Stiles whispered. 

Derek didn’t kill the other wolf.

Instead he roared again and got off of its chest. Derek growled threateningly and gestured to the woods with his head, clearly telling the other wolf to get lost.

Once the wolf was gone, Derek turned and faced Stiles and Isaac and whined softly.

Oh wow.

Stiles' boyfriend was a werewolf. 

Derek was a werewolf.

Stiles was dating a werewolf.

Werewolf.

Werewolf. 

Werewolf.

Wow. 

*** 

Derek was clearly nervous. And Stiles wanted to say something, but he couldn’t find the words. He wanted to thank Derek for saving their lives, and he wanted to ask how the _fuck_ was he a werewolf, and what the _hell_ just happened. 

Derek whined and pressed his snout into Stiles’ hand. And as soon as there was physical contact, Stiles found his words again. It was like there was a spark that transferred between them, and suddenly Stiles was himself again. 

“Oh we’re going to talk,” he grinned, rubbing Derek’s snout and scratching under his chin. Derek’s fur was really soft. Like really, really soft. Stiles wouldn’t mind cuddling up in that every night. Suddenly he was real jealous that Isaac was the one who had cuddled into Derek during movie time. Sneaky little kid.

“But I’m going to venture a guess and say that you won’t be able to make any coherent sentences until you’re back to a human form. And this is not how I expected to see you naked for the first time, so we’re going to get you some clothes. Wait here.” 

***

As Stiles was walking down the path with Isaac he had a hell of a lot to think about. Isaac clearly wasn't saying anything, but he looked like he was deep in thought.

Derek made it clear that he didn’t want Stiles and Isaac walking back to camp alone, so he stayed in his wolf form and escorted them from the trees. Stiles kept getting glimpses of Derek through the trees, and waved softly to assure him that things were still fine.

A little weird, but still fine.

But Derek being a werewolf made so much sense and explained so much. 

It explained Derek's near obsession with Stiles' neck. Stiles thought it had been just one of Derek's turn-ons but now that he knew that Derek shifted to a wolf once a `month; the neck thing wasn't a problem. Not that it had been a problem in the first place, now it just made so much more sense.

Derek being a werewolf also explained his hormone explosion during their full moon dates. Now Stiles understood why Derek had attacked his neck at the movies that night, and why he looked so upset when the waitress sat them at a table away from Stiles. Obviously she didn't know not to isolate a werewolf from his neck of choice on a full moon.

Stiles was pretty sure that he could chalk the different colored eyes, to Derek's werewolf side. Derek's eyes were usually a brilliant hazel green, but when he was a wolf, they turned red. Stiles was sure that he could get used to the eye flashing.

So far, that was his favorite part.

But Derek was a _werewolf._ How had Stiles not realized any of that? They had been together for 7 months, and he didn’t have a clue. He should’ve been able to piece some of it together.

Derek darted onto the path and nuzzled Stiles’ hand and Isaac’s waist before dashing back into the forest.

“If anyone sees you, you’re going to make a great fur coat,” Stiles whispered. He had a feeling Derek could hear him. Werewolves had great hearing right?

The answering bark confirmed Stiles suspicions. 

This was going to be so much fun.

***

“I can hear you thinking,” Derek said softly. “I know you have questions, so ask away.”

They were lying down in the tent, Isaac had just fallen asleep, and was snoring softly. Somehow he had managed to burrow into Derek’s chest again. Stiles would’ve been annoyed but Isaac looked so calm nuzzled into Derek’s chest and Derek looked so happy to have him there, that Stiles couldn’t even begin to get annoyed even if he wanted to.

“There’s just so much going through my head though,” Stiles whispered. “Like way more than usual.”

“Today’s been pretty eventful,” Derek chuckled, squeezing Isaac slightly as the boy tossed in his sleep. He pressed a small kiss to Isaac’s curls before turning his attention back to Stiles. “Whatever’s going through your mind, just ask me. I’ll answer it as best I can.” 

“Funny,” Stiles snorted. “I guess I’m just in shock a little bit. You’re a werewolf. And I’m your mate. What does that make Isaac?”

“He’s your pup,” Derek answered. “And since you’re my mate, he’s my pup too.” 

“Is ‘pup’ a werewolf thing?” Stiles asked. “Because I called Isaac pup one time and he got mad at me.” 

“I guess,” Derek chuckled. “It’s what my uncles and aunts used to call me when I was growing up. It just seemed natural.” 

“Oh,” Stiles frowned thoughtfully. “That makes sense. So what’s it like being a werewolf?”

“I could ask you what it’s like being a human,” Derek replied. “I’ve been a werewolf my entire life, so it’s all I’ve known. I can’t really compare it to being a human because I’m not a human. I just have a human form.” 

“Oh right. So obviously you can turn into a wolf at will, but why were you so much bigger and badder than the other wolf?” 

“He was an omega,” Derek explained. “That’s the lowest rung on the werewolf totem pole. I’m an alpha, so I’m physically superior. Plus I was fighting to protect my mate and my pup, so I had an added bonus of adrenaline. Wolves are family oriented, and will do anything to protect their pack and family.”

Stiles grinned at Derek’s possessiveness of Isaac. So far on this camping trip, he had seen nervous Derek, playful Derek, protective Derek, possessive/family-man Derek and vulnerable Derek. 

Playful, protective and possessive/family-man Derek were his favorites so far. 

“Alpha? What does that mean?”

“It means I’m the leader of my pack, and I can give people the bite and turn them into werewolves.”

“You have a pack?”

“Officially, no. But I consider you and Isaac a part of my pack, since you’re my mate and Isaac is my pup.” 

Possessive/family man Derek, gotta love him.

“We’re part of your pack?”

“A pack is basically a family unit of wolves and those associated with them. Pack members also smell a certain way. I’ve spent enough time with you and Isaac that you both probably reek of me. Which would tell other werewolves to back off, because it signals that you’re part of my pack.”

“Oh,” Stiles said, “But you said officially we’re not part of your pack, so what does that part mean?” 

“For me to formally introduce you into my pack, I would have to bite you,” Derek explained. “It’s similar to the Turning Bite, except it just makes you a member of my pack instead of turning you into a werewolf.”

 You could turn me into a werewolf?”

“If you wanted me to I could.” 

“Oh man that is cool,” Stiles exclaimed. “I don’t want the bite, but that’s still really cool. What else can you do?” 

“I have enhanced senses, supernatural strength and I can take people’s pain away,” Derek said. “I can also sense when my pack, especially my mate and pup are in pain or in danger.” 

“Really?” 

“Yes. The day that Isaac got hit by the drunk driver, I felt a pang in my chest when it happened. But I didn’t know what it was, so I ignored it until I got the phone call that Isaac had been in an accident.” 

“This is some serious shit,” Stiles grinned. “So when can I officially join your pack?”

“You could do it right now if you wanted,” Derek shrugged. “All I have to do is bite you." 

Stiles thought about it. He loved Derek. That he was sure of. He was also Derek’s _mate,_ which explained why everything came so easy with Derek. Why Derek seemed to fit perfectly with Stiles’ family, why Derek was the best boyfriend on the planet. They were made to be together. Stiles couldn’t pass that up. 

However, Stiles didn’t want to be a werewolf, and he was sure of that too. But he really wanted to spend the rest of his life with Derek, and that didn’t change even though Derek was a werewolf. In fact it made it a little more exciting _because_ Derek was a werewolf.

Besides, according to Derek, Stiles was pretty much pack anyway. Why not make it official?

“Will it hurt?” 

“A little bit more than a regular bite.”

“Do it,” Stiles said, with conviction. “I want to be pack. I want to be part of your pack.”

“Are you sure?” 

“Derek, I love you.” Stiles said. “If you haven’t gotten that through your head yet, then I’m going to get Dr. Graham to check you for a head injury, because I am head over heels in love with you. Apparently I am your mate slash life partner or whatever. I’m pretty sure I need to be in your pack officially. So just bite me already.”

“You’re kind of perfect, you know that?”

Stiles rolled his eyes and motioned for Derek to come closer. Derek moved Isaac to his other side, and scooted over towards Stiles.

“Are you ready?” he asked softly. He lifted up the hem of Stiles’ shirt and pressed a small kiss to Stiles’ hip.

“Do it.”

Stiles hissed as Derek sunk his fangs into Stiles’ side. Derek had been careful to bite through flesh instead of close to a bone, but it still wasn’t pleasant.

“Hurts,” Stiles gritted. 

“Sorry,” Derek muttered. He started licking the area where he bit. “It should heal in about a day. You’ll be sensitive there for a while. But you’re pack now.”

“I feel it,” Stiles whispered.

And he did. He had always felt some sort of connection to Derek, but now he could physically feel a tug drawing him to the other man. It was like there was a magnet deep inside Derek and it was drawing Stiles to him.

He could definitely get used to this pack stuff.

“I love you,” Derek whispered.

“I love you back.”

*** 

It was the last day of the camping trip. Derek and Isaac were packing things away into bags, while Stiles was taking down the tent.

“Derek come here for a sec,” Stiles said.

“What’s up?” Derek asked as he jogged over to Stiles.

“I want you to make Isaac pack too,” Stiles replied. 

“Ok,” Derek nodded. “That’s a good idea. I was going to bring it up when we got back to Beacon Hills, but we can do it now too.” He turned to Isaac who was struggling trying to get the cooler into the jeep. “Hey pup, come here.”

Stiles grinned inwardly at the word ‘pup’. It was just the cutest thing and it described Isaac perfectly.

“Hi,” Isaac grinned. 

“Hey pup,” Derek smiled, getting down on one knee. “You know how I’m a werewolf right?”

“Yeah,” Isaac nodded, smiling brightly. “You’re the coolest.”

“Thanks pup,” Derek smiled. “Well the thing is, werewolves have packs, which means people or wolves that are part of their family.” 

“Oooh, can I be part of your pack Dr. Derek?” Isaac asked. He was bouncing up and down with excitement. “I already think you’re part of my family anyway. Dad and I both love you a lot.”

“Of course you can be part of my pack pup,” Derek smiled. “But I have to bite you first ok? It’s gonna hurt for a little while, but it’ll make you pack ok?”

“Ok,” Isaac nodded. Stiles could tell that his son was nervous, so he walked over and grabbed his hand.

“It’s going to be fine Isaac,” he said softly. “I’m already pack.” 

“Ok,” Isaac smiled. “Do it Dr. Derek. I’m ready.”

***

Stiles felt the bond pull as soon as Isaac was bitten. It was like an enhanced version of his paternal instincts. It was awesome. 

“The three of us. We’re pack now,” Derek said.

***

Derek insisted on putting Isaac to bed when they got home. And as Stiles heard Isaac’s giggles and Derek’s whispered words of affection, he knew that he needed to make Derek a permanent part of their family forever.

“Move in with me.” 

But somehow in the midst of that conversation, ‘move in with me Derek’ turned into ‘marry me Derek’ and before Stiles knew it, Derek was saying yes.

***

Best camping trip ever. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Ohhh! And for those of you who are wondering, I'm putting the finishing touches on the next chapter for "Can't Take the Heat." I plan on sending it to my beta tomorrow and should have it up later this week. :)))


	20. Isaac

Danny’s parents were taking him to Mexico for vacation.

“It’s going to be a lot of fun,” Danny said. “My dad said that they have these cool drinks called lava flows and he says I can have a virgin one.”

“What is a virgin?”

“I don’t know, but it has strawberry juice in it. Strawberry is one of my favorites. Are you going to have fun camping with your dad and Dr. Derek?”

“Yeah, I’m excited,” Isaac beamed. “Dr. Derek said that there was a river and a lot of hiking trails and some deer!”

“That sounds like fun,” Danny nodded. “I’m going to miss you while I’m in Mexico, but my dad said that I can write you a postcard every day.”

“Do they get mail in the woods?” Isaac asked, nose crinkling in confusion.

“I don’t know, but if they don’t then you can come over to my house and you can see them when we both get back.”

“Ok,” Isaac agreed. “Goodbye Danny, I’ll see you soon.” He stretched his arms wide and gave his boyfriend a big hug.

“I’ll miss you too Isaac,” Danny said, returning the hug. “Have fun camping.” 

“Oh I will.” 

***

The night before the camping trip, Isaac was laying in bed. Dr. Derek had come over for dinner and had once again eaten more food than Isaac. This time it was meatloaf. Isaac was beginning to think Dr. Derek was a bottomless pit. Isaac sighed and wandered into his dad’s room. Cuddles with his dad and Dr. Derek would probably help him fall asleep.

“Dad?” Isaac whispered as he knocked on the door. “Dr. Derek?”

“What is it pup?” Dr. Derek asked sleepily. He was lying on his back and Isaac’s dad was wrapped around him, head pillowed onto his chest. Isaac frowned, that was his favorite spot, his dad couldn’t take it.

“I can’t sleep,” Isaac whispered. “Can I lay with you?”

“Of course pup,” Dr. Derek smiled, pushing Isaac’s dad off his chest. “Do you have a pillow and stuff?”

“Yeah,” Isaac answered, holding up his blanket, pillow and wolf plushie. “They’re all here.” 

Dr. Derek patted the side of the bed invitingly, and Isaac wriggled in bed next to him.

“You’re warm,” he murmured, molding into Dr. Derek’s side. “And you smell good.”

“I showered before I went to bed pup,” Dr. Derek chuckled, ruffling Isaac’s hair and kissing his head. “Your dad didn’t want me smelling like meatloaf.” 

“You ate a lot of meatloaf,” Isaac snoozed, as sleep began to overcome him. Not only was Dr. Derek a perfect pillow, he was also a sleeping pill. And a pretty powerful one at that. Isaac was halfway to dreamland and he had barely been in bed 45 seconds.

“I’m a growing boy,” Dr. Derek chuckled. He grabbed Isaac and set him on his chest. Isaac smiled sleepily, because Dr. Derek knew that it was his favorite place to sleep. Dr. Derek wrapped one arm around Isaac, and extended his other arm under Isaac’s dad’s head, so Isaac’s dad could use Derek’s arm as a pillow. “Goodnight Isaac.”

Isaac couldn’t answer because he was asleep.

Isaac was having the same dream he had been having for almost 7 months. He and his dad were running with the big black with friendly red eyes. Except instead of a field like the last two dreams, they were at a campsite.

The wolf was running around and beckoning for Isaac and his dad to follow. Isaac darted down the trail after the wolf and tackled him onto the ground. The wolf whined happily and licked Isaac’s face. The wolf and Isaac ran up and down a couple hiking trails, and every time Isaac tried to touch the wolf, he was surprised at how soft his fur was.

Clearly there was a reason that wolves were his favorite animal ever. 

This was definitely the best dream ever. 

***

When Isaac woke up the next morning, he felt more refreshed and relaxed than he had in a long time. He should probably start sleeping next to Dr. Derek more often. Isaac glanced over at the alarm clock that his dad kept on the nightstand. It was 7:30, his dad said that they were going to leave around 9, so he set the alarm for 7:45.

Isaac quickly did the math in his head. There was still 15 minutes until the alarm went off. He was a lot better at doing math now, thanks to Dr. Derek’s help. 

Isaac yawned and looked at his dad and Dr. Derek. Somehow his dad had managed to get his head back on Dr. Derek’s chest. Isaac quickly realized that he was lying on Dr. Derek’s side. Isaac frowned, his dad could be sneaky when he was sleeping. But Isaac didn’t really mind. He got to sleep on Dr. Derek’s chest during movie nights, he guess he could share.

As Isaac watched his dad and Dr. Derek sleep, he noticed that Dr. Derek reminded him of the wolf in his dream. It was a little weird because Dr. Derek didn’t have fur or red eyes, and he wasn’t a wolf. Maybe it was just because wolves were Isaac’s favorite animals and Dr. Derek was Isaac’s favorite guy ever.

Tied with his dad of course.

***

“I spy with my little eye…..Something…… blue!" 

“Isaac for the last time, you have to pick something inside the car,” his dad laughed. “It’s not fair if you pick something and we drive past it. Then we’re never going to guess.”

“I haven’t picked anything outside of the car!” Isaac grinned.

“Pup the last thing you picked was a tractor,” Dr. Derek said from the passengers seat. He grinned at Isaac through the rearview mirror. “And before that you picked a cow that you saw in the fields. None of those things are in the car.”

“No, I didn’t.” Isaac giggled. It was so fun to mess with his dad and Dr. Derek. They were such good sports about everything. Not like Dennis. He would always take things so literally.

“What did you pick this time pup?”

“The blue car in front of us,” Isaac laughed. 

“I rest my case,” his dad sighed. “We’re playing a different game.”

***

Isaac was the first one out of the car. He was so excited; he had never been camping before. Of course he and his dad had built blanket forts in the living room and made s’mores in the microwave, but that was noting like this. 

Isaac could stay here _forever._ It was beautiful out here. The sky was blue and it was dotted with white fluffy clouds. There were some of the tallest trees that Isaac had ever seen, he had learned about them in class. They were called evergreens and they stayed green all year long. The fresh air was nice too. He could smell someone grilling, even though it didn’t smell as good as when Dr. Derek grilled.

But Dr. Derek was the best at grilling.

Dr. Derek was the best at everything really. 

***

“Burgers are ready,” Isaac’s dad said, placing a plate of burgers onto the picnic table. “Isaac do you want cheese on yours?”

“Yes please,” Isaac answered. “Dr. Derek do you have any 5’s?” 

“Nope, sorry pup. Go fish.”

***

“Whoa,” Isaac said under his breath. The fireflies were everywhere. It looked like there were a bunch of little night-lights flying around the clearing. They were so beautiful and so delicate, and Isaac just wanted to take them all home. 

Isaac took the jar that Dr. Derek gave him and ran headfirst with the jar open, intent on catching as many fireflies as possible.

“Don’t forget to close your mouth!” he heard Dr. Derek’s voice in the distance. “You don’t want to catch any bugs with that!” 

Isaac quickly clamped his mouth shut.

The fireflies were fast, but Isaac was faster. And he had a big jar too. Before he knew it, the jar was full of fireflies. He smiled gleefully, but then the fireflies started to fly back out of the jar. 

“No, don’t do that,” Isaac pleaded. “You have to stay in the jar so I can bring you home and show my boyfriend Danny.”

However Isaac’s newfound firefly friends had other ideas and soon Isaac was left with an empty jar and an emptier expression. 

Back to square one. 

Isaac ran through the clearing again, (mouth still shut) and stopped only when his jar was full of fireflies. This time he tried clamping his hand on the mouth of the jar in an effort to keep the fireflies from escaping.

“Dr. Derek, I got some!” he called across the clearing. “Now what do I do?”

Dr. Derek was at his side in an instant. 

“Wow pup, you got a lot,” he nodded appreciatively. He took out a piece of aluminum foil and wrapped it over the mouth of the jar. He grabbed a stick from the ground and poked several holes in the foil. “All done,” he smiled, handing the jar back to Isaac.

“Cool,” Isaac grinned. “What are we going to name them?”

“Isaac there’s about 15 fireflies in that jar,” Dr. Derek grinned. “There’s no way you can name all of them and remember them.”

“Oh. Should we let some of them go then?”

“What do you want to do?” 

“I want let them go and catch them again,” Isaac smiled. “Do you have another jar?” 

“As a matter fact I do,” Dr. Derek replied as he pulled another jar out of his cargo shorts. “Who ever catches the most is the winner.” 

“You’re on!” Isaac grinned!!

*** 

Isaac didn’t win. 

But Dr. Derek shared some of his fireflies, so he kinda won. 

***

Isaac woke up early the next morning, and he could tell immediately that something was missing. Instead of being burrowed into Dr. Derek, Isaac was nuzzled next to his dad.

Not that there was anything wrong with that, his dad was pretty good at cuddling too, but Isaac distinctively remembered falling asleep next to Dr. Derek.

Isaac quickly scanned the tent, but Dr. Derek was nowhere to be found, and now Isaac was beginning to get a little worried. Maybe someone kidnapped Dr. Derek in the middle of the night? Maybe he got eaten by a bear?

Isaac panicked until he heard a sneeze from outside the tent. It sounded a lot like Dr. Derek. Isaac breathed a huge sigh of relief, wriggled out of his dad’s sleeping embrace and walked outside of the tent.

It was still dark outside, but Isaac could see Dr. Derek sitting in one of the EZ up chairs, facing the first part of the sunrise. Isaac could smell the slightly bitter aroma of coffee and he was pretty sure that Dr. Derek was eating a granola bar.

“Dr. Derek?” Isaac whispered cautiously as he made his way to the chair. “What are you doing?”

“Hey pup,” Dr. Derek smiled. He put his coffee in the cup holder and pulled Isaac onto his lap. “You’re up early. Want some of my granola bar?”

Isaac nodded and took a bite. Chocolate chip. His favorite.

“I woke up and you weren’t there. And I got scared that maybe you got eaten by a bear or something.”

Dr. Derek chuckled and ruffled Isaac’s hair, “Don’t worry pup. It’s going to take a lot more than a bear to get rid of me.”

“What about a mountain lion?”

“I think I could beat a mountain lion in a fight.”

“What about a polar bear?”

“Polar bears aren’t in the woods pup,” Dr. Derek grinned. He leaned over Isaac’s shoulder and took another bite out of the granola bar.

“Oh yeah,” Isaac grinned sheepishly. “So what are you doing?”

“I was planning on watching the sunrise,” Dr. Derek answered. “Do you want to watch it with me or do you want to go back to bed?”

“I’ll stay,” Isaac yawned. “I’m not that tired.”

Isaac shifted in Dr. Derek’s lap to get comfortable. They sat in silence for about half an hour, watching the sun come up over the horizon and decorate the sky in brilliant shades of pinks, blues and yellows.

“It’s really pretty,” Isaac murmured.

“Sure is,” Dr. Derek said. “Too bad your dad is sleeping.”

“He’s weird sometimes,” Isaac grinned. “But he’s still pretty cool.”

“Am I pretty cool?” Dr. Derek asked.

“Duh,” Isaac huffed, like it was the most obvious thing in the world. “You’re the best.”

“Good,” Dr. Derek replied, and Isaac could feel him grinning. “I love you pup.”

“I love you too Dr. Derek. Can you make pancakes for breakfast?”

***

After breakfast, (which consisted of some of the best pancakes Isaac ever had) Isaac, Dr. Derek and Stiles changed into their swim trunks and headed down to the river. It was still pretty early in the morning, so the water was chilly but Dr. Derek said that it was the best time to go swimming because everyone and their mother would want to swim in the afternoon.

As his dad and Dr. Derek set up chairs on the riverbank, Isaac dashed into the water, only to dash back out because it was so cold.

“It’s freezing,” Isaac muttered, as he ran into the waiting towel that Dr. Derek held in his hands. “I think it’s frozen.”

“Maybe you should go a little bit slower next time pup,” Dr. Derek chuckled. He rubbed Isaac through the towel in and effort to get him warm and Isaac hummed his content.

“Yeah Isaac,” his dad chimed in. “We don’t want you to get hypothermia.”

Isaac didn’t even know what that was.

“Are you going to come in the water with me dad?”

“In a little bit bud,” his dad smiled back. “I’m still trying to digest these pancakes that Dr. Derek made. They were really good.”

His dad winked at Dr. Derek and Isaac rolled his eyes.

“Ok, I’m going to go back in,” he told Dr. Derek.

“Go slow,” Dr. Derek smiled, patting Isaac on the back. “We’ll be in there in a little bit.”

“Ok.”

Isaac waded into the river. First he got his toes wet, then we ventured out a little deeper so the water came up to his knees.

“It’s still cold!” he hollered back to his dad.

“You’re doing great bud!”

Isaac grinned and waded out a little farther. Now the water was at his belly button. Isaac smiled as he gradually became numb to the temperature. He submerged his head under the water and blew some bubbles. He resurfaced and shook his curls, getting the water out of his hair.

Isaac turned back to his dad and Dr. Derek, but they weren’t even paying attention. Dr. Derek had his hands around Isaac’s dad’s waist and was kissing him gently. And from the way he was blushing, Isaac was pretty sure his dad was enjoying himself.

So much for them joining him in the river. Isaac knew the way his dad and Dr. Derek worked. Once they started kissing or cuddling, they wouldn’t stop until one of them got hungry, or Isaac would distract them.

Since Isaac didn’t have any food, he had to distract them. And what better way to do that then splash them with some frigid river water?

Isaac waited until he was pretty sure that his dad and Dr. Derek forgot he existed, and then he splashed them both with a boatload of water. 

The next thing he knew he was flying through the air, courtesy of _Air Dr. Derek._ Isaac grinned and started splashing Dr. Derek while trying to avoid the waves of water that Dr. Derek was sending his way.

“You can’t beat me Dr. Derek!” Isaac shouted. “I’m a master water bender!” Isaac made an exaggerated motion with his entire body and splashed Dr. Derek again. Dr. Derek fell back into the river, flailing dramatically.

“You may be a master,” Dr. Derek grinned as he emerged from the water. “But I’m the Avatar!” He sent a huge wave of water in Isaac’s direction, and Isaac laughed as the water went up his nose.

Dr. Derek was the greatest.

“I know you’re not having fun with out me!" 

Isaac turned and saw his dad sprinting to join them. Isaac braced himself for the inevitable splash, but was surprised when his dad picked him up and tossed him over to Dr. Derek.

“Hey Derek, do you want to play Isaac-ball?”

“I would love to Stiles,” Dr. Derek grinned. He dunked Isaac in the river a few times, making sure that Isaac was still breathing. “Go long.”

Isaac laughed as Dr. Derek hurled him across the river. He landed with a splash in front of his dad. Isaac tried to get away, but his dad was too fast.

“How many points for an Isaac-alley-oop?”

Isaac squealed with De as his dad tossed him high in the air and Dr. Derek came and tackled him out of mid-air. 

“I think that was worth 20 points,” Dr. Derek grinned, holding Isaac close and kissing his head. “What do you think pup?”

“Do it again!”

***

 The next day after lunch Isaac’s dad decided that they were going to go on a nature hike. So they changed into some comfortable clothes and followed Dr. Derek to the hiking trail. Dr. Derek was gripping his hand a little bit tighter than usual, but he was probably just really excited. Isaac was excited too.

As they were walking up the trail, Isaac started catching glimpses of cool animals. He saw a family of rabbits scurry across the trail. He was pretty sure that he saw a deer deep in the woods, and an otter was running back towards the river. He kept trying to wriggle out of Dr. Derek’s grip, but Dr. Derek was holding his hand really tightly. 

Isaac finally was able to get out of his grip to chase a dragonfly.

“Hold my hand pup,” he heard Dr. Derek’s voice from behind him. “We don’t want you getting lost.”

Isaac really wanted to roll his eyes, but he knew that Dr. Derek had a point. The last thing that Isaac wanted was to get lost on the hiking trail; he would probably get eaten by a bear or a mountain lion or something terrible.

“Sorry Dr. Derek,” he replied sheepishly. “Did you see the dragonfly though? He was so pretty.”

Dr. Derek eventually let Isaac ride on his shoulders. As Isaac dangled his legs, he tried not to hit Dr. Derek’s chest with his dirty shoes. Isaac had come home dirty from school enough times to know that it was not fun to try to get mud and grime out of clothes.

“Dr. Derek, what is your favorite animal?” Isaac asked from his perch on Dr. Derek’s shoulders.

“A wolf,” Dr. Derek answered, squeezing Isaac’s ankles gently.

“Mine too!” Isaac grinned. He patted Dr. Derek’s head. “Do you think if we both got wolves that they would be friends?”

“I don’t think your dad would let us get wolves pup,” Dr. Derek smiled and Isaac’s dad snorted in agreement. “But if he did I’m pretty sure that our wolves would be best friends. What would your wolf’s name be?”

“Ummmm, Flash!” Isaac said. “Because he would be super fast! What about yours?”

“I don’t know,” Dr. Derek replied. “I’d have to think about that. What do you think I should name him?” 

“Dr. Derek, I think I saw a deer,” Isaac whispered. He hadn’t meant to cut Dr. Derek off, he was just really excited to see the deer and he didn’t want to scare it off. “Can you put me down?”

“Sure pup, but you have to promise to hold my hand ok?”

“Ok,” Isaac agreed.

***

Isaac had every intention of holding Dr. Derek’s hand. He really did. But as soon his feet touched the ground, the deer saw him and bolted down into the woods.

“There!” Isaac shouted.

He took off running. He was the fastest in his class. He could catch a silly deer.

***

Isaac couldn’t catch the deer. It was really fast, way faster than Isaac. He hadn’t even been close. He had dashed into the woods, but as soon as he was in them, the deer was so far away that it was almost hopeless. 

But Isaac had been determined to see the deer, so he had ran after it. He couldn’t see the deer after about 30 seconds. It also did this annoying thing of stop running to see if Isaac was still chasing it, and then it would run even more.

Isaac never had a chance. The deer was gone.

And now he was lost. He had stopped to take a breath in the middle of the woods, and was doubled over with his hands on his knees trying to catch his breath. He looked around the woods and realized that he had no idea where he was, and he couldn’t see his dad or Dr. Derek.

He sighed and sat down. He was probably going to be in a lot of trouble. All he wanted to do was see the deer though.

He got up when he heard Dr. Derek calling his name.

“Isaac? Isaac? Where are you pup?!" 

Isaac sighed in relief and followed the voice. “I’m over here Dr. Derek,” he called as he made his way over to his voice.

“Are you ok?”

“Yeah!” Isaac hollered back. “I couldn’t find the deer though. He ran away.”

“I’m sorry pup,” Dr. Derek shouted back. “Just stay where you are. Your dad and I will be there soon.”

“Ok,” Isaac called. He sat down in the middle of the clearing and looked around the woods. He had heard Dr. Derek’s voice, but he wasn’t sure what direction it had came from.

So when he heard rustling behind him, he stood up and ran towards the noise, intent on hugging Dr. Derek and never letting him go.

***

It wasn’t Dr. Derek.

It wasn’t his dad either.

It was… well Isaac didn’t really know what it was, but it looked angry. And hungry. It had long teeth and there was a lot of drool coming out of its mouth. It was growling lowly and taking slow but deliberate steps towards Isaac. 

Isaac was pretty sure that this thing was about to eat him. He whimpered softly and started taking steps back. But every step that Isaac took back, this thing took a step forward. It had gold eyes and they kept flashing every time Isaac took a breath.

Isaac took another step back and tripped over the ground. The thing snapped its jaws and took several steps closer. Isaac felt the tears start to form around the rim of his eyes.

“Dad?” he whimpered. He scurried to his feet and took some more steps back. “Dr. Derek?”

The thing growled and took another step towards Isaac.

“Please help me,” he whispered, hoping that his dad or Dr. Derek would be there soon.

***

Isaac didn’t remember falling asleep, but the next thing he knew the big black wolf from his dreams was in front of him. Except this time, instead of playing with Isaac and his dad, it was fighting a smaller gray wolf.

“What’s that?” Isaac asked, as his dad was carrying them both to safety. “Dad?” he panicked. “What’s that? Where’s Dr. Derek?”

“Isaac, I….. I think that is Dr. Derek,” his dad whispered. “He’s a werewolf.”

Isaac took another look at the big black wolf and his draw dropped. “Is he winning?” he asked nervously. “There’s a lot of blood. Dad is Dr. Derek ok?!”

“I think so,” his dad murmured into Isaac’s neck. “What about you buddy? Are you ok?”

“We have to help him!” Isaac cried. “Dr. Derek!!”

Dr. Derek had to be ok. He had to win. Isaac wasn’t sure if he could handle not having Dr. Derek around all the time. He loved Dr. Derek with all of his heart and he would miss him so much if the other wolf beat him. Dr. Derek was great at cuddling, he told Isaac how much he loved him, and he helped Isaac with his math homework. Dr. Derek watched Roly Poly Ollie with him, and ate lots of waffles. Dr. Derek made him laugh and made him smile, and comforted him when Dennis was mean to him at school.

Dr. Derek couldn’t die now.

He couldn’t.

“Dr. Derek!!” Isaac screamed again. He started to cry and buried his face into his dad’s shirt. He didn’t care about anything else; he just wanted Dr. Derek to be ok.

“Isaac he’s fine,” his dad hissed, rubbing Isaac’s back in an effort to calm him down. “He’s going to be ok. I promise.”

Isaac whimpered and nodded and turned back to watch Dr. Derek fight the other gray wolf. 

Dr. Derek was bigger, faster and stronger than the other wolf too. He was beating the other wolf up. Dr. Derek grabbed the other wolf’s neck in his jaws and tossed him against a tree. Before the other wolf could get up, Dr. Derek rammed him into the tree, splintering it and sending the other wolf crashing against another one.

The other wolf whined in pain, but got to his feet and growled at Dr. Derek.

Dr. Derek _roared_ back and started circling the other wolf, jaws snapping and eyes flashing violent red.

“You can do it Dr. Derek,” Isaac whispered, clenching his tiny fists. “I love you.”

The other wolf lunged at Dr. Derek, but Dr. Derek sidestepped him and flipped him onto his back. Dr. Derek quickly slammed the other wolf down with both paws and roared into his face. The other wolf whined and extended his neck.

Isaac shut his eyes. He didn’t want to see Dr. Derek kill the other wolf.

“Derek…” Isaac heard his dad whisper. “Derek don’t.”

Isaac opened his eyes just in time to see Dr. Derek flinch and Isaac was pretty sure it was because he heard his dad’s voice.

“I love you Dr. Derek,” Isaac whispered again. 

Dr. Derek roared again, but let the other wolf up. The other wolf whined and limped away. As soon as he was gone, Dr. Derek howled his triumph and trotted around the clearing a couple times, making sure that the other wolf was gone for good.

When he was satisfied that he was gone, Dr. Derek turned his attention to Isaac and his dad. He whined softly, and Isaac ran towards him.

Dr. Derek was ok.

Dr. Derek was safe.

***

When Isaac had gone to Dr. Derek because of his ‘heart murmur’, Dr. Derek had shown him how to ‘asses a patient.’ He showed Isaac how to check vitals and check to make sure that the patient was breathing ok and, ironically, that the heart was beating regularly. After a couple of weeks of practice, Dr. Derek had told Isaac that he was pretty good at assessing patients and that he would make a great doctor one day.

Isaac didn’t want to be a doctor.

Isaac was determined to make sure that Derek was ok. He poked and prodded Dr. Derek’s legs, checking for broken bones. He examined the scratches on Dr. Derek’s body and snout. He pressed his head to Dr. Derek’s chest and listened to Dr. Derek’s heartbeat.

_Lub-dub. Lub-dub. Lub-dub._

His heart was beating normally.

Dr. Derek was going to be ok.

Isaac was so overcome with joy that he buried his face into Dr. Derek’s fur. It was just as soft as it had been in his dreams. Isaac giggled as Dr. Derek licked the back of his neck.

“Are you ok Dr. Derek?” Isaac asked softly. He was pretty sure that Dr. Derek was fine, but Isaac wasn’t a doctor just yet. And he had never examined a werewolf before. He wanted to hear it from Dr. Derek himself that he was going to be ok. “That was scary. You’re all bloody.”

Dr. Derek answered with a bark that caught Isaac off guard. Isaac flinched a little bit. He hadn’t expected Dr. Derek to make words, but he also hadn’t expected Dr. Derek to bark at him either. Isaac grinned when Dr. Derek licked his face as an apology.

“Your tongue is slimy,” Isaac smiled softly. He took Dr. Derek’s snout in both of his hands and pressed his dry nose to Dr. Derek’s wet one. “Are you sure you’re ok?”

Dr. Derek whined softly and nosed Isaac’s neck and forehead, assuring Isaac that he was ok. 

“Good,” Isaac nodded. “I love you Dr. Derek. And I don’t want you to go away. Don’t scare me like that again.”

Dr. Derek nosed Isaac’s chest in response, and Isaac hugged Dr. Derek tighter than he ever had before. 

***

“Dr. Derek I have to tell you something.”

“What’s up pup?” Dr. Derek asked. It was the last night of the camping trip, and they were leaving in the morning. Isaac’s dad had fallen asleep a little while ago, leaving Isaac and Dr. Derek awake. Isaac was laying on Dr. Derek’s broad chest and looking directly into his eyes.

“You’ve been in my dreams.” Isaac smiled, as Dr. Derek ran his fingers through his curls. “Sometimes I dream about a big black wolf with red eyes, and now I know it’s you.”

Dr. Derek smiled softly and wrapped both of his arms around Isaac’s back. He hugged him tightly, “I love you pup,” he whispered.

“I love you too Dr. Derek.”

***

Getting bit hurt.

A lot.

But Isaac was going to be strong for Dr. Derek and for his dad. He barely cried too. As soon as Dr. Derek removed his teeth from Isaac’s leg, Isaac felt a tug toward both Dr. Derek and his dad.

“It’s called the bond pull,” Dr. Derek smiled, as if reading Isaac’s thoughts. “The three of us, we’re pack now.”

“Can I hug you?” Isaac asked sheepishly. He didn’t know why he was nervous. He hugged Dr. Derek all the time. But this time as a little different. He had never hugged Dr. Derek as a pack member before.

“You don’t ever have to ask pup.” Dr. Derek said softly. He pulled Isaac into the tightest hug ever. “I love you so much.”

“I love you too, Dr. Derek.”

***

The wedding was in three months. Isaac couldn’t be more excited.

Dr. Derek was going to stay with them forever.


	21. Derek

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's finished!!
> 
> Hooray!!

If he was honest with himself, Derek was more than a little nervous about the whole camping trip. So much was riding on the outcome, it the most pressure Derek had ever been under in his entire life. Of course he wanted Stiles and Isaac to know the truth, they deserved that after all Derek had put them through, but he still had no idea how he wanted to tell them or how they would even react. It wasn’t like he could just shift in front of them without any warning. That would probably end terribly. 

Both of his parents had been born wolves, so his father never had to worry about telling his mother than once a month he needed to turn into a four-legged wolf and run around in the full moon. The only problem Derek’s mom had to deal with was that his dad used up all the hot water in the mornings, but that was another story. 

Derek sighed and put his face in his hands. So much was riding on this weekend. He could either lose Stiles and Isaac forever or he would be with them forever. And fuck, not only did he have to tell Stiles that he was a werewolf, Derek also had to tell him that Stiles was his mate and life partner. No pressure or anything. 

This was definitely going to be an eventful weekend. 

***

Fun fact: It’s really hard to play ‘I spy’ in a moving vehicle. Because things keep moving. 

***

As soon as Derek got out of the car he smelled the werewolf. Other werewolves had distinct scents and in the clear aroma of nature, Derek was able to pick this scent out like a sore thumb. 

He tried to relax; it was probably just another werewolf out for a camping trip just like he was. But something didn’t sit right in his stomach, and he really wanted Stiles to get back in the jeep and take them all home. But he looked at Stiles, who was admiring the outdoors and he looked at Isaac who was rolling around in the grass like he had never seen it before and decided against it. 

If the other werewolf decided to confront Stiles or Isaac, Derek would protect them both with his life. For now though, he was just going to enjoy spending time with two of his favorite people. 

*** 

Once he was able to push the other werewolf out of his head, Derek started to set up camp. He had only brought one tent, but he brought three sleeping bags. As much as he loved Stiles, Derek really didn’t want to share a sleeping bag with him. Stiles squirmed a lot in his sleep, and Derek didn’t want him bursting out of the sleeping bag because it was too constricting. 

But on the off chance that Stiles did want to snuggle under the starry mountain sky, Derek came prepared with an air mattress and blankets, just in case. He would let Stiles take his pick. 

***

“Hey pup, do you want to help me set up the tent?” 

“Yeah!” Isaac smiled, bounding over to Derek. Derek laughed and picked some grass out of the boy’s curls. He would never understand what it was that made Isaac so happy all the time, but Derek wanted him to stay like that forever. 

“Dr. Derek do we have one of those tents with the rooms and zip doors?” Isaac asked. 

“Sorry pup,” Derek grinned, reaching down and ruffling the boy’s curls. “It’s just a regular tent.” 

“Oh, ok.” Isaac nodded. “That’s cool too. I’m really excited to be here! We’re going to have so much fun!” 

“We sure are pup,” Derek smiled. “It’s gonna be great.” 

***

Stiles chose the air mattress and blankets. 

He wanted those nighttime cuddles. 

***

The first night the three of them snuggled onto the queen sized air mattress that Derek brought. Isaac snuggled in between Derek and Stiles and promptly fell asleep. 

Stiles laughed softly and kissed the sleeping boy’s cheek. 

“This was a great idea Derek,” he whispered. “Thanks for bringing us here.” 

“Thanks for coming,” Derek whispered back. 

“Of course,” Stiles smiled. “Goodnight.” 

“Goodnight.” 

“Love you.” 

“Love you too Stiles.” 

***

The next morning after breakfast, Isaac decided that he wanted to go swimming in the river. So the three of them changed into their swim trunks and made their way down to the riverbank. 

Derek tried ignoring Stiles’ bloom of arousal when he took his shirt off and was standing in just his swim trunks. He turned to see his mate blushing profusely and walked over to press a gentle kiss to his lips. 

“Hey,” Derek smirked. “Having fun?” 

“Yeah,” Stiles grinned. “I’ve always liked the water.” 

Derek grinned back and pulled Stiles so they were standing chest to chest and kissed him deeply. He could feel Stiles’ skin heating up against him and he knew that his favorite blush was back. 

“Mmmm, Love you,” Stiles said softly when he pulled back for air.

Before Derek could reply, he was suddenly splashed with freezing cold water. He looked over and Isaac was shaking with mirth. 

“Did that just happen?” Stiles asked as he wrapped his arms around himself for warmth. 

“I think it did,” Derek replied. ”Don’t worry, I’ll defend your honor.” 

Derek turned back to Isaac and flashed him a wicked grin before tossing him down the river. 

***

For lunch Stiles had a surprise. 

“What is this?” Derek asked, shaking his thermos. “I can’t get mine open.” 

It was a high quality thermos, made out of stainless steel, and Derek couldn’t quite smell what was in it, and it made him uncomfortable. He liked knowing what Stiles smelled like, and he liked knowing what Stiles’ cooking smelled like too. 

Stiles laughed and twisted off the top of the thermos. “It’s chicken alfredo in a thermos,” he grinned. “I know you like it, so I whipped some up before we left.” He handed Derek and fork and went to help Isaac open his thermos. 

After they finished eating, Stiles decided to put Isaac down for a nap. “Even though you’re on vacation, you still need your naps,” he grinned ruffling Isaac’s hair. 

Derek expected Isaac to put up more of a fight, but instead the boy smiled sleepily, gave Derek and Stiles a hug each and disappeared into the tent. After ruffling around in the blankets for a little bit, Derek heard his heartbeat even out, signaling that he was asleep. 

Stiles poked his head in the tent a few minutes later. “He’s asleep,” he whispered, confirming what Derek already knew. He came around and sat in one of the EZ chairs next to Derek. 

“What’s up?” Derek asked amiably. He couldn’t help but smile, he was just so happy that Stiles was back. Derek honestly thought he had lost him forever during those three miserable weeks. Even though it had been awhile since they had gotten back together, Derek still had to remind himself that it was real. 

“Just thinking,” Stiles said, looking off into the mountains. 

“About?” Derek prompted. 

“Do you ever wonder what your life would be like if things were different?” 

“Different how?” 

“Like… if your family was still alive?” Stiles asked nervously. “Like where do you think you would be?” 

Derek closed his eyes and swallowed nervously. He still rarely talked about his family. Stiles probably knew the most about his family; most of his co-workers only knew that they weren’t alive anymore. Stiles was one of the few people alive that knew what actually happened to them. 

“I think… I think that my life would’ve been a little different,” Derek started. “My parents, they were always so supportive of me. They always wanted the best for me, but at the same time they always were pressuring me to settle down. I think I went on about 10 blind dates throughout college.”

“They set you up on blind dates?” Stiles asked incredulously. “How did that work out?” 

“It was mostly my sister,” Derek grinned fondly. “She always talked about how she wanted to be an aunt. She just wanted me to have kids so she could spoil them and I could do all the hard work raising them.” 

“She sounds great,” Stiles smiled, reaching out and taking Derek’s hand. 

“She would’ve liked you,” Derek grinned. “And I know she would’ve loved Isaac. I’m convinced the three of you would team up to make my life miserable.” 

“I don’t think we could do that,” Stiles said. “I love you too much. And I’m just waiting for the moment when Isaac comes home and tells me that he wants to live with Dr. Derek forever.” 

“Guess you can’t break up with me then,” Derek said, gripping Stiles’ hand a little tighter.

“He’s really the only reason you’re still around,” Stiles joked. 

“Right,” Derek said, as he rolled his eyes. “What about you? What if Jenny had decided to stay with you?” 

“I would’ve eventually been miserable,” Stiles shot back, eyes narrowing with conviction. “Anyone who’s selfish enough to make someone choose a newborn over her, needs mental help. I would’ve gotten away from her eventually, and I would’ve taken Isaac with me.” 

“Oh,” Derek replied quietly. Stiles didn’t talk about Jenny at all, and now he knew why. He sounded angry with her, but Derek could tell that Stiles was relieved that he had gotten away from her when he did. “That makes sense.”

“Would you still want to date me if you had the chance?” Stiles asked softly. 

“Of course I would,” Derek answered, knitting his eyebrows with concern. “Why would you think I wouldn’t?” 

“Don’t give me that,” Stiles grinned. “You have to know how attractive you are. People were probably lining up to get in your pants in high school and college.” 

“That doesn’t mean I wanted to date them,” Derek muttered darkly. 

Derek had been an awkward teenager. It had taken him a while to grow into his body. People never really made fun of him, but no one went out of their way to try and be his friend. When Derek started lifting weights in the summer between sophomore and junior year, everyone and their mother suddenly wanted to be his friend and get in his pants. But Derek was still guarded about getting involved with the wrong person. He was waiting for his mate. He just hadn’t known it was Stiles. 

“What does that mean?” 

“A lot of the attention I got in high school and college was purely because of my looks,” Derek sighed. “I didn’t really feel like anyone wanted to get to know me outside of the bedroom. So I didn’t really date. I just kept to myself. I had a few friends here and there, but I didn’t really date.” 

Stiles opened and closed his mouth a couple of times. “Oh,” he said quietly. “So why did you want to date me?” 

“Because I was pretty sure that you wanted to actually get to know me,” Derek smiled, squeezing Stiles’ hand gently. “You talked to me about broccoli for crying out loud.” 

Stiles grinned and pulled himself into Derek’s chair. Derek smiled as Stiles ran his fingers through his hair. He hummed and buried his face into Stiles’ neck, relishing the way his mate smelled. 

“So I guess I’m just the perfect match for you then huh?” Stiles smirked, bumping noses with Derek. 

“Looks like it,” Derek grinned. 

“So are we gonna fall asleep on this chair or are we going to join Isaac in the tent?” 

They were in the tent, cuddled together with Isaac between them and asleep within 10 minutes.

***

The next day they were sitting around the campsite, trying to figure out what to do. Isaac was drawing a picture of the tress and mountains for Danny, Stiles had set up a game of solitaire for himself, and Derek was content to just watch his mate and pup. Sometimes the best part about vacations was relaxing. 

“Derek, can we go on a hike?” Stiles spoke up. 

“Of course,” Derek answered. “I think there are trails on the western side of the campsite. We can hike those after lunch if you want.” 

Truthfully, Derek was a little wary about straying too far away from the campsite. He had smelled the other werewolf off and on all day, and the last thing he wanted was a wolf on wolf confrontation in front of Stiles and Isaac. Especially without them knowing that Derek was a werewolf. But he couldn’t say no to the look of joy and anticipation on Stiles’ face, and that’s how he found himself on a nature trail later that afternoon. 

“Hold my hand pup,” Derek repeated. “We don’t want you getting lost.” 

“Sorry Dr. Derek,” Isaac replied sheepishly. He ran back to where Derek and Stiles were walking and grabbed Derek’s hand. “Did you see the dragonfly though? He was so pretty.” 

“I sure did pup. But you can’t go run off like that anymore.”

The last thing Derek wanted was to lose sight of Isaac, even for a second. He knew he would have no trouble finding him, his scent was permanently in Derek’s nose, but the other werewolf was getting closer. Derek was pretty sure that he was on the same trail as them. Derek especially didn’t want Isaac to run off and be confronted by the other werewolf without Derek’s protection. 

“Ok,” Isaac answered. “Hey Dr. Derek, do you think we will see any more deer?” 

“Maybe if you’re quiet and don’t run around screaming about dragonflies,” Stiles chuckled. 

Isaac huffed and stuck his tongue out at his dad. 

“Come on Isaac,” Derek smiled, picking him up and putting him on his shoulders. “You can ride on my shoulders, that way you can see the deer from far away.” 

And this way, Isaac would be under Derek’s protection at all times. Or over Derek’s protection, since he was sitting on Derek’s shoulders. 

“Ok,” Isaac agreed, resting his hands and chin on top of Derek’s head. “You have to go slow and quiet so you don’t scare the deer away.” 

“You’re one to talk Isaac,” Stiles grinned.

“Maybe we should all be quiet so we can hear the deer,” Derek chuckled. The friendly banter was amusing, but Derek wanted to be on high alert, just in case. 

Stiles and Isaac meant everything to him, and he wasn’t going to let anything, werewolf or not, take them away from him. 

***

The next 20 minutes were pretty uneventful. Derek was pretty sure that the other wolf was either following them, or circling them. He was definitely close. But whatever he was doing, he didn’t seem to be posing a threat, so Derek forced himself to relax. He had his mate in one hand and his mate’s pup was bobbing up and down on his shoulders. 

“Dr. Derek I think I saw a deer!” Isaac whispered excitedly. “Can you put me down?” 

“Sure pup, but you have to promise to hold my hand ok?” 

“Ok,” Isaac nodded vigorously. 

Derek lifted Isaac off his shoulders and set him on the ground. He was reaching for Isaac’s hand, when his pup shouted “There!” and took off running. 

“Isaac wait!” Stiles called, in unison with Derek’s “Come back pup!” 

But Isaac was gone. His little legs were churning like egg beaters running to find the deer. 

Fuck. 

***

It was all a blur actually. One second, Derek saw Isaac standing in a clearing across from the other werewolf and the next Derek was fully transformed, claws extended, hurtling towards the wolf that dared approach his family. 

Both Isaac and Stiles were screaming and their elevated heartbeats were pounding in Derek’s ear. But as long as he was busy fighting the other wolf, they were safe, and that was all that mattered. 

Protect. Protect. Protect. 

Derek wasn’t sure what was really happening, but the other wolf wasn’t putting up much of a fight. He was an omega and a fairly weak one, whereas Derek was an alpha, hell bent on protecting his mate. 

It was the first time in a long time that Derek was fighting for something other than himself. He hadn’t actually been in many fights in his life, his family had been pretty peaceful, so in theory he should’ve been outclassed by this other wolf. But the adrenaline was pounding and Derek’s instincts were telling him nothing but to eliminate the threat to his mate. 

Eventually Derek got the other wolf on his back, throat exposed. Derek was seconds away from tearing out his throat when the other wolf whined and submitted, baring his neck even further. Derek growled threateningly and released the wolf to retreat. 

He then turned to face Stiles and Isaac. This was the moment of truth. 

***

Isaac was hugging him. 

It took Derek a minute to process what was happening but Isaac’s face was pressed into his fur. Derek whined softly and licked the boy’s neck. He wanted to shift back to his human form but given the way Stiles was threading his arms through the tattered remains of his clothes, that wasn’t an option anymore.

“Are you ok Dr. Derek?” Isaac asked. “That was scary. You’re all bloody.” 

Derek let out a short bark and instantly regretted it from the way Isaac flinched. But then he smiled when Derek licked his face. 

Most of the blood on his fur came from the other wolf, Derek wasn’t that bad of a fighter. Of course Isaac had never seen a werewolf fight before, so Derek couldn’t really fault him for that. 

“Isaac we should probably get back to the camp site so we can get Dr. Derek some new clothes,” Stiles said. He still hadn’t looked at Derek since the fight, which made Derek really nervous. 

Derek whined and padded over to Stiles. He pushed his snout into his mate’s hand, trying to reassure his mate that he was still himself, he was just was in a different form. 

“Oh we’re going to talk,” Stiles grinned, rubbing Derek’s snout and scratching under his chin. “But I’m going to venture a guess and say that you won’t be able to make any coherent sentences until you’re back to a human form. And this is not how I expected to see you naked for the first time, so we’re going to get you some clothes. Wait here.” 

Derek bared his teeth and flattened his ears against his head. The other wolf had been dumb enough to confront Isaac when Derek was with them. Derek wasn’t going to let them out of his sight. 

“I don’t know how we’re supposed to walk back to the camp grounds with a big black wolf Derek. This isn’t the jungle book.” Stiles said, as if he was reading Derek’s mind. “What are you going to do? Hide in the trees while we get your clothes?”

Derek yipped and licked Stiles’ hand. 

“Ok, ok,” he grinned. “We’ll walk back to camp, get you clothes and have a talk ok?” 

“Can I ride on your back Dr. Derek?”

***

Stiles didn’t let Isaac ride on Derek’s back, saying something about not wanting to draw too much attention. Derek was initially a little upset, but he saw the reason in Stiles’ words. If someone saw a 5-year-old boy riding on the back of a black wolf, they would probably call animal control.

Which would probably not go over well for Derek. 

***

Once he had shifted back to his human form and was fully clothed, Derek stepped back into the campsite and sheepishly rubbed the back of his hair. 

“So that was not the way I wanted to tell you.” 

“You’re a werewolf,” Stiles said pointedly. He was looking directly into Derek’s eyes for the first time since the fight, and it was making Derek a little uncomfortable. Stiles hadn’t really had a reaction since the altercation and it was beginning to worry him. Isaac was holding his dad’s hand and was looking Derek with wide eyes full of questions.

“Yeah,” Derek replied. “That was the point of this whole camping trip thing. I wanted to earn your trust back from the heart murmur thing, and I also wanted to tell you everything. I didn’t plan on there being another werewolf here though.” 

“I’m still trying to process the fact that you’re a werewolf,” Stiles cut in. “Like you’re an actual werewolf. I just saw you transform into a wolf with four legs, really sharp claws and really sharp teeth. Like how does that happen?” 

“Um. I was born this way?” Derek tried. 

“You’re really quoting Lady Gaga at me?” 

“No I’m serious,” Derek explained. “I’ve been a werewolf my whole life. My parents and sister were werewolves too. I really was born this way.” 

“Ok,” Stiles sighed. “This changes things. This really changes things.” 

Derek caught his breath nervously. Stiles was probably about to break up with him. He was going to say something like, ‘sorry Derek, you’re really nice, but I like my boyfriends to be 100% human’ or ‘don’t come near me anymore you freak.’ 

“Your eyes.” Stiles said, breaking Derek out of his thoughts. And nowhere near what Derek was expecting to hear.

“What about my eyes?” Derek asked nervously. 

“When you were a wolf they were red, but now they’re green. And sometimes when you’re a human they changed colors.” 

“Oh, yeah,” he answered. “It just happens when I can’t control myself. You make me crazy. In a good way,” he hurriedly added, noticing Stiles’ eyebrow rising. 

“Does your neck fetish on full moons have anything to do with being a werewolf?” 

“Yeah,” Derek blushed. “You’re my mate, so your scent smells really good to me. And on full moons all my senses are heightened and I just want to be as close to you as possible.” 

“Wait a minute, back up,” Stiles said, holding his hands up in defense. “I’m your mate? What does that mean?” 

Derek sighed. He hadn’t meant to tell Stiles about the mate thing so soon, but it just kind of slipped out. It was probably best to get everything out at once though. Derek and secrets didn’t always work out, especially when Stiles was involved. 

“It means that you’re my life partner or soul mate,” he said. “Like you complement me and stuff like that. It’s hard to explain to humans. It’s kind of an instinct thing.” 

“So what, like a match made in werewolf heaven?”

“Something like that,” Derek smiled softly. “Look, if this is too much and you don’t want to see me anymore, that’s fine. I understand. Can I say goodbye to Isaac though?” 

He smiled softly at the pup, who still hadn’t moved throughout the conversation. 

“Who said I didn’t want to see you anymore?” Stiles asked. “You just saved my son’s life and you basically told me that we were made to be together and you think I’m going to break up with you?” 

“You… You don’t want to break up with me?” 

“Of course not,” Stiles said, kissing Derek lightly. “I don’t want to break up with you.” 

“But I’m a werewolf.” 

“And I’m a human,” Stiles shot back. “What’s your point?” 

“I just didn’t know if you would be comfortable with it,” Derek replied nervously. He didn’t want to say the wrong thing and risk losing Stiles and Isaac forever. “It’s a lot to take in.”

“Should I be worried for yours, mine or Isaac’s health and well-being?” Stiles asked, quirking an eyebrow.

“No, of course not,” Derek replied. “I would do anything in my power to keep you guys safe. You have to know that. But it’s kind of a big deal.” 

“I’ve been with you for 7 months, and it hasn’t been a big deal at all,” Stiles pointed out. “Unless there’s something else you’re not telling me, I don’t have a problem with it at all.” 

“No, there’s nothing else.” Derek said. “I love you.” 

“I love you too,” Stiles smiled softly. “I love you so much.” 

“So we’re together now? For real?” Derek asked hesitantly. 

“For real,” Stiles said, kissing Derek again. 

***

Later that night when Derek was sure that the other people in the campsite were sleeping, he took Stiles and Isaac out to the woods and shifted in front of them, whining softly when Isaac squealed with glee and pressed his face back into Derek’s fur. 

“It’s so soft,” he murmured, rubbing his face in the fur. “Dad you have to feel this.”

“I already felt it bud,” Stiles grinned. “But he’s soft like our carpet huh?” 

Derek snorted. He was way better than a carpet. 

“Can I ride on your back now Dr. Derek?” Isaac asked. 

Derek lied down and tilted his head, motioning for his mate’s pup to climb on top of him. Once Isaac had his hands secured around Derek’s neck, Derek trotted around the clearing. 

“Faster, Dr. Derek faster!” Clearly trotting wasn’t good enough for Isaac. Derek snorted softly and quickened his pace, enjoying Isaac’s giggles of happiness. 

“I love you Dr. Derek,” Isaac whispered into his ear when Derek stopped for a rest. He climbed off him and laid down next to him. Derek whined softly and pressed his wet nose to the boy’s cheek, nosing gently until Isaac started giggling again. 

Derek and Isaac both got up and walked back over to Stiles who had been perched on a rock, watching them both. 

“Here come my two favorite men,” he smiled, picking Isaac up and ruffling Derek’s fur. “So does this mean when you move in we can’t get a dog?” 

Derek gently bit Stiles’ hand, annoyed that his mate would have the audacity to ask that question. 

“Ok, ok,” Stiles laughed, snatching his hand away. “Sorry I asked.” 

Derek whined softly and rubbed his face against Stiles’ thigh. Stiles smelled great when Derek was in his human form, but when Derek was a wolf, Stiles smelled perfect. 

“And for the record,” Stiles grinned. “Wolves are way better than dogs anyway.” 

***

Derek got extra Stiles and Isaac cuddles that night. 

***

The rest of the camping trip passed by with nowhere near the amount of drama that happened the first few days. They would wake up early, go do some camping things, and at night Derek would shift back into his wolf form and play with his mate and his pup until Isaac was teetering over from exhaustion. 

“Did you have fun pup?” Derek asked as they were driving home. 

“Best trip ever,” Isaac sighed. “I want to come back every year.” 

“I don’t know about that,” Derek grinned. “I think you’ll love the beach.” 

***

It hit Derek as they were driving home. 

“I have a pack.” 

“What?” Stiles asked. 

“I have a pack,” Derek repeated. “You and Isaac. You’re my pack now. I bit you and you’re my pack.” 

“Yeah,” Stiles grinned. He took one of Derek’s hands in his own and squeezed tightly. “We’re your pack.” 

“I never thought it would end up like this,” Derek whispered honestly. “But everything worked out so much better than I would’ve hoped.” 

“Funny thing how life works,” Stiles grinned. “I don’t know about you, but I like being a part of your pack. It’s cool. What do you think Isaac?” 

“I love it,” the boy grinned. “It’s like you and Dr. Derek are magnets and I want to cuddle and snuggle with you all the time.” 

“You did that even before you were pack,” Stiles smiled, looking at his son in the rearview mirror. “So I guess that means that Dr. Derek and I should be expecting extra cuddles from now on?” 

“Yeah,” Isaac smiled. “I’m never letting either of you go. Ever.” 

“I’m guessing this isn’t what you imagined happening on this camping trip either,” Stiles grinned, turning his attention back to Derek. 

“It’s ever better,” Derek smiled back. He squeezed Stiles’ hand and relished the bond pull that he had on both his mate and his pup. “It’s perfect.” 

***

“Move in with me right now.” 

“What?” Derek frowned. They had just gotten home and Derek had just gotten done putting Isaac to bed. He was honestly ready to just cuddle in bed with Stiles. It had been a long vacation at the campsite. 

“Move in with me,” Stiles repeated. “Tomorrow. Go home, rent a moving van, bring all your stuff here. I want you with here now.”

“Stiles are you sure?” Derek asked. They had talked about him moving in, but not until the end of summer, even though Derek pretty much lived with Stiles already. 

“I’m positive,” Stiles answered. “I’m pack now, and I’m your mate. You basically live here anyway. And you’re a werewolf which makes it so much cooler too.” 

“So you only want me to move in with you because I’m a werewolf,” Derek frowned, crossing his arms over his chest. 

“No.” Stiles said. He walked over and unfolded Derek’s arms and placed them around his waist, forcing Derek to hold him close. “I want you to move in because I love you. I love you so much. This weekend I feel like I learned everything important about you. I learned more about your family. I learned that you’re a werewolf, I learned that you’re willing to die for Isaac and me. I love you. And I want to be with you always.” 

Stiles wrapped his arms around Derek’s neck and Derek almost melted from the emotion. This was all he ever wanted. 

“This sounds like a proposal,” Derek smiled softly. 

“If I had a ring I would be down on one knee,” Stiles replied, locking eyes with Derek. “But I don’t because we just got back from camping. But tomorrow, you better believe I’ll be in front of you, down on one knee, with the best diamond you’ve ever seen.” 

Derek felt his mouth go dry. The plan of the camping trip was just so Stiles would know that he was a werewolf and he was Derek’s mate. He hadn’t planned on making Stiles pack officially and he especially hadn’t planned on adding Isaac either. The whole trip had turned out spectacularly. But this was an added bonus that Derek couldn’t have predicted in a million years. His mate was literally asking Derek to be his husband. 

“I love you Derek,” Stiles continued. “I love you so much. And I can’t imagine my life without you. Will you marry me?” 

“Yes,” Derek said, eyes welling with tears. “Yes. Yes. Yes.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I may add an epilogue of their wedding scene at a later date. I'm not sure. If I do it'll probably be from an outside POV like Danny or Erica. I haven't decided yet. If you want it let me know and I'll try to hammer one out in the next couple of days.
> 
> But with or without an epilogue I'm so glad that this is done!!
> 
> Thanks for all the encouragement and kind words!! 
> 
> Come [tumblr]() with me! I really love honey nut cheerios (that's irrelevant, but yeah.)


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